Computer Security Issues

[crustyasp46]

In recent times there has been discussion galore about breaches of data loss of large corporations to hackers. Countless millions of dollars lost to hackers obtaining personal information. It is certainly a sad situation in the history of computing.

Is the worry and discussion of security anew phenomena? Not by a long shot. Below are some extracts of an article printed in Creative Computing Magazine in 1976. Thirty five years ago.

Creative Computing Magazine 1976

The issue of data privacy ... an individual's rights to control personal data... is a highly complex and controversial topic. lt affects not only the individual, but also the agencies of government and the activities of business and other organizations which require such information to meet social and economic needs. And it also affects the design and operation of the tool most used for information processing and storage ... the computer.

Legislation concerning data privacy is in various stages of development atstate, county and even city levels. Since passage of the Federal Privacy Act of 1974 there has been an outpouring of rhetoric and written materials concerning individual rights versus information technology. Legislators, educators, civil rights groups and computer manufacturers have produced volumes of statistics,
opinions and studies about the subject.

Paramount to any discussion of data privacy is "the computer," often considered the culprit because of its
ability to rapidly store, retrieve, process and transmit information. Consequently, computer manufacturers as well as computer users are concerned about legislation that could drastically change administrative techniques and computer architecture. The key issue appears not whether to discontinue computer technology, but how to keep and extend its benefits while preserving the rights of citizens to privacy and confidentiality without negative impact to the manufacturers and users of computer systems.

For the computer manufacturer, data privacy automatically means providing "data security" in the computer system. This means safe guarding confidential information... protecting it from unauthorized disclosure,
modification or destruction, either accidental or intentional, through the use of special hardware and software. In extreme situations, this can mean additional expenditures by the manufacturer for research, development and production, as well as installation, and maintenance to meet customer specifications. On the user side, it can increase operating costs through increased equipment Costs and additional computer time and generally add to the cost of doing business.

Computerized and centralized information systems can take us in two directions. One would lead us to a rigid, automated bureaucracy with great knowledge and power but little regard for the human consequences of its program. The other would enlist the power of computers in the service of individuals, enabling them to cope more successfully with the complexities of modern life and increasing the opportunities for successful fulfillment of their talents. Society has no choice but to use computer aids in solving the problems of our age, but it now must learn how to use these products to serve the people. lf the time ever comes when the misuse of computerized record keeping leads man to fear being curious, daring, and willing to deviate from
the norm in order to experiment, it would not be a case of the machine triumphing over man, as some people fear. lt would be a case of man becoming the machine.

As stated in the National Academy of Sciences study: "Man cannot escape his social or moral responsibilities by murmuring feebly that 'the machine made me do it'."
End of quotes from 1976.

Conclusion;

Hackers, virus, spyware , trojans have been around almost since the beginning of computing. Some of these have actually been good for the computing industry. But by and largely it has been a nasty aspect of computing.

The recent hacks of companies such as Sony, Microsoft , and Citi I am unsympathetic to. Their customers affected by these attacks I do sympathize with. I feel that these corporations that have had breaches to their security are at fault for these breaches. Surely, with the resources available to them, they simply could have been better at their security matters.To my way of thinking it was their own negligence and lack of concern for their customers data safety. My reasoning for this thinking is, that with the recent rash of publicity about security breaches , all corporations should be automatically doing audits of their security, if they handle customer data.

We as computer users, joe average, also have a responsibility for the security of our personal data. my advice, simple as it may be, never submit any information whatsoever on the internet, that you would not want someone to access that who it was not intended for may gain access to that information. It restricts a lot of the convenience that we have come to expect with computing, but it may save your savings to enjoy, rather than that nasty who has just hacked and gained access to your bank account.

Extreme, yes, but until security in computing is attacked vigorously and with determination I personally do not wish to share sensitive information on the net.

I do not know a solution to the security in computing problems, To those companies making the money on security issues which are just patches of the moment for the most recent breach, just maybe if you are serious about security a contribution by you and those corporations that handle sensitive data, to a central think tank , may solve the security problems once and for all. Maybe it is time to think outside the box and try to deal with the issue.