Category Archives: Policy

Current Event: Government plans massive internet backbone security upgrade

Posted on January 16, 2009 by Erik Turnquist

The U.S. Federal government is planning to spend millions of dollars upgrading the backbone of the internet’s routing system. Specifically the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is planning to quadruple its budget for improvements (from $600,000 to $2.5 million per … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Policy | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Current event: Downadup worm infects 1.1 million machines in 24 hours

Posted on January 15, 2009 by cxlt

A worm known as Downadup, or also Conficker by some security companies, is spreading rampantly by exploiting a bug found – and patched – months ago in Windows machines.  F-Secure believes that the worm has already compromised 35 million machines … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Policy | 6 Comments

Storm worm cracked, but defenses may not fly

Posted on January 11, 2009 by oterod

The Storm worm, noticed for the first time on January 17th, 2007, is one of the more notorious worms of the last few years. Targetted initially towards individual Windows machines, victims were often infected after receiving a bait e-mail with … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Ethics, Policy, Privacy, Research | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Security Review: Security and Privacy Code of Ethics

Posted on January 8, 2009 by Kevin Wallace

The Security and Privacy Code of Ethics is a contract that every CSE484 student is required to sign, on penalty of a zero grade in the course. It places restrictions on the manner in which students may use knowledge gained … Continue reading →

Posted in Ethics, Policy, Security Reviews | 2 Comments

Current Event: Lexus to begin sending messages directly to drivers

Posted on January 8, 2009 by seraphim

According to a recent article in USA Today, Lexus will begin including new technology to allow the company to send audio messages to the computers present in their cars. It appears to be similar to an e-mail system, where the … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, Policy | 5 Comments

Security Review: “Smart Guns”

Posted on March 16, 2008 by Trip Volpe

Overview This is a security review of “Smart Guns,” a general class of locking/use prevention mechanisms for firearms that rely on biometrics or other authentication indicators (such as “smart” chips embedded in the gun and in rings or other tokens … Continue reading →

Posted in Availability, Physical Security, Policy, Security Reviews | 18 Comments

Current Events: British Police Want DNA of Children

Posted on March 16, 2008 by Trip Volpe

From The Guardian, and on Slashdot. Police in the United Kingdom may soon be be able to collect DNA samples from children if they exhibit behaviors that suggest they may commit crimes later in life, at least if Scotland Yard … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Ethics, Physical Security, Policy, Privacy | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

The House on Amending FISA Act

Posted on March 14, 2008 by Kris Plunkett

Today the House of Representatives voted on a bill that would amend the FISA Act of 1978, which deals with government wiretapping. The amendments would deny amnesty to telecommunication industries for complying with illegal warrant less wiretaps by the Bush … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Policy, Privacy | Comments Off on The House on Amending FISA Act

The Goolag Scanner and Google Hacking

Posted on March 9, 2008 by Kris Plunkett

Bruce Schneier posted on his blog earlier in the week about a new, free, open source application by the “Cult of the Dead Cow” (cDc) called Goolag Scanner. It essentially automates a technique called Google Hacking, which was pioneered by … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Ethics, Policy | 4 Comments

Collaborative Current Event: Counterfeit Cisco Network Hardware Imported From China Seized

Posted on March 2, 2008 by Max Aller

http://www.thestandard.com/news/2008/02/29/us-canadian-agencies-seize-counterfeit-cisco-gear USA and Canadian law enforcement has seized US$78 million worth of Cisco routers, switches, and network cards in 400 seizures since the coordinated operation between the two nations was launched in 2005. The reason for the seizures is “illegal … Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Integrity, Policy | 5 Comments