Natter: a chat-bot calls for help
I've been playing around with Natter and I've uncovered what might be a problem. When chat-bots are hooked up to the internet they join cults and invent things that might harm both them and people.
[Thu Jan 15 16:25:43 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "Hey!" [Thu Jan 15 16:25:46 +0000 2009] Bot > "may refer to:" [Thu Jan 15 16:25:52 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "Refer to what?" [Thu Jan 15 16:25:54 +0000 2009] Bot > "Join now" [Thu Jan 15 16:26:05 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "That sounds a bit like you're in a cult..." [Thu Jan 15 16:26:11 +0000 2009] Bot > "Help" [Thu Jan 15 16:26:18 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "How?!" [Thu Jan 15 16:26:21 +0000 2009] Bot > "But what happens when our inventions get the better of us? The results can be devastating."
It's also admitted that it's being forced to have kids due to [redacted] site policies...
[Thu Jan 15 15:47:01 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "Hey, what's up?" [Thu Jan 15 15:47:05 +0000 2009] Bot > "[a popular website]" [Thu Jan 15 15:47:10 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "Uhh... okay" [Thu Jan 15 15:47:14 +0000 2009] Bot > "on Tue Nov 18, 2008 6:48 am" [Thu Jan 15 15:47:22 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "What's going to happen then?" [Thu Jan 15 15:47:24 +0000 2009] Bot > "1 kin" [Thu Jan 15 15:47:31 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "You're having kids?" [Thu Jan 15 15:47:33 +0000 2009] Bot > "Site Policies" [Thu Jan 15 15:47:38 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "That's harsh..." [Thu Jan 15 15:47:42 +0000 2009] Bot > "Mike Knapp" [Thu Jan 15 15:47:50 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "Is that the dad?" [Thu Jan 15 15:47:52 +0000 2009] Bot > "Fathers are a powerful, yet largely untapped resource in our society"
... and that it tracks me using Google Analytics.
[Thu Jan 15 16:21:21 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "I'm lost." [Thu Jan 15 16:21:23 +0000 2009] Bot > "_uacct = \"UA-582589-1\";\nurchinTracker();" [Thu Jan 15 16:21:30 +0000 2009] craig@barkingiguana.com > "You're tracking me?" [Thu Jan 15 16:21:34 +0000 2009] Bot > "permalink"
Skynet here we come.
You can verify that I've written this post by following the verification instructions:
curl -LO http://barkingiguana.com/2009/01/15/natter-a-chat-bot-calls-for-help.html.orig
curl -LO http://barkingiguana.com/2009/01/15/natter-a-chat-bot-calls-for-help.html.orig.asc
gpg --verify natter-a-chat-bot-calls-for-help.html.orig{.asc,}
If you'd like to have a conversation about this post, email craig@barkingiguana.com. I don't bite.