IP: Living Riskier Electronically

[Dave Farber <farber () cis upenn edu>]

NO SAFETY NET

Living Riskier Electronically

By AMY HARMON

CONSIDER the recent string of electronic events: A virus that becomes known 
as the love bug causes nearly $1 billion worth of damages as it ravages 
computer systems across the world. The Office of National Drug Control 
Policy admits that it may have violated federal privacy guidelines by 
implanting software on the computers of its Web site visitors that tracks 
their travels across the Internet.

Hackers seize control of Nike's corporate Web site to announce that "global 
justice is coming -- prepare now."

<snip>

"The Net's going to go fumbling along until there's a massive intrusion," 
said Dave Farber, an Internet pioneer and chief technologist for the 
Federal Communications Commission. "Then everything will hit the fan. 
Congress is going to go ballistic, and we're going to panic our way into 
doing something."
He added, without much hope, "It would be much nicer to start talking about 
it now."
The technological roots of the Internet's vulnerability are well known. 
Conceived by the Defense Department as a decentralized communications 
system that would continue to function even if chunks of it were destroyed, 
the Internet is by its nature open and interconnected.

"The Internet was built in an age when we all knew each other, we all 
trusted each other, we were talking about where to have dinner and what 
silver futures to buy," said Mr. Farber, speaking of the scientists who 
built it. "Now we've moved it into an environment where the country counts 
on it. And it's very hard to retrofit security."

<snip>

http://www.nytimes.com/library/review/062500elec-signature-review.html