Safety vs Safety

[LongBlade]

This is an interesting conundrum.

Government mandated security holes make it easier to track bad guys. But those holes also allow hackers and foreigners with ill intent to get into our systems and steal, spy, or disrupt our systems.

Government-mandated software vulnerabilities would make computers and the Internet a lot less safe, warned a coalition of 20 computer-security experts.

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2013/05/20/security-experts-warn-government-is-making-the-internet-unsafe/

The question is whether making everyone's computers unsafe will make it easier to spy on a few bad guys and therefore make everyone safer.

[eyebiter]

Most consumer and enterprise level electronics are manufactured in Asia.. The Chinese already use this to their advantage in cyber warfare.. Their companies design and manufacture the products, we attach them to our networks without a second thought.

Hear this week DoD approved Apple devices.  How things have changed since the cold war when all part suppliers had to be American made or from an approved allied nation.

[LongBlade]

Most consumer and enterprise level electronics are manufactured in Asia.. The Chinese already use this to their advantage in cyber warfare.. Their companies design and manufacture the products, we attach them to our networks without a second thought.

Hear this week DoD approved Apple devices.  How things have changed since the cold war when all part suppliers had to be American made or from an approved allied nation.

I've always had a lingering suspicion that the Chinese might be tinkering with hardware. Never seen it proven, but I wouldn't be too surprised. Of course the Microsoft OS is Made in USA, so it wouldn't surprise me if we had some deliberate holes made in the OS to hand it right back.

Who loses? Everyone who uses a computer.

[GDS_Starfury]

Of course the Microsoft OS is Made in USA, so it wouldn't surprise me if we had some deliberate holes made in the OS to hand it right back.

so all these problems are actually features?

hmmm   :o

[LongBlade]

Who knew that intentionally placing security holes on software could lead to it backfiring on us?

Chinese hackers who breached Google's servers several years ago gained access to a sensitive database with years' worth of information about U.S. surveillance targets, according to current and former government officials.

The breach appears to have been aimed at unearthing the identities of Chinese intelligence operatives in the United States who may have been under surveillance by American law enforcement agencies.

source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/chinese-hackers-who-breached-google-gained-access-to-sensitive-data-us-officials-say/2013/05/20/51330428-be34-11e2-89c9-3be8095fe767_story.html

[Staggerwing]

A couple of years ago there someone secretly added a bunch of 'counterfeit' Cisco routers to the factory output stream that had a hack of some kind already in the device. I have no idea whatever became of it but I would not be surprised to learn that some of those infected boxes might still be at places like Raytheon or even military facilities.

[Jack Nastyface]

The use of honey-pots to attract hackers is _almost_ as old as hacking itself.  Usually, hacking the honey-pot only leads to a dead-end.  You would've thunk that someone would have thought of planning for this...

[LongBlade]

You would've thunk that someone would have thought of planning for this...

There's a lot of stuff you'd think folks woulda thought of.

[bob48]

Then think of all the stuff that nobody has thought of yet, and when somebody does think of it, we'll all say why didn't anybody think of that before 'cause you'd think it was obvious, but you'd only think that after somebody thought of it.

..erm, time for my medication yet , nurse?

[LongBlade]

Thanks Bob. I hadn't thought my reply was so vague until you thought of that. Whodathunkit?

[bob48]

Its all pretty logical when you think about it.