Canadian Hacker School Goes Dark After Government Probe
For Bitmaker Labs, the trouble started with a flattering newspaper profile. In April, Canada’s Globe & Mail ran a piece of the Toronto-based hacker school, calling it “an intense program for programmers” and saying that founder Matt Grey is “dedicated to changing the world.”
Two months later, Bitmaker has temporarily ceased operations. The problem? Local educational regulators read the article and — two weeks ago — came knocking on Bitmakers doors.
The story caught the attention of Ontario’s Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities, or TCU. According to Bitmaker’s website, the government is “concerned with the vocational nature of our program and lack of proper government oversight.” Reached Monday, the TCU confirmed that it was conducting an inquiry into Bitmaker. “No determination has been made regarding the program, no enforcement action has been taken against Bitmaker Labs and the Ministry has not requested that Bitmaker Labs cease offering its program,” TCU spokesman Gyula Kovacs said in an email message.
