hello! yoshi

Ars Technica has an article about the hubbub started by Patrick Dempsey’s suggestion for a second, safer internet. It includes a good rundown on what started it and also Dempsey’s response to the ripping he got about this suggestion.
In one respect he makes a valid comparison in which we don’t let murders go just because they cross some jurisdictional line and the same should hold true for the internet. This is a good argument to make since real world boundaries are hard to enforce in the digital world and has allowed online criminals a way around real world laws. That isn’t completely a technical issue though, but still bears some weight.
At real contention is when he explains making things safer from spam, identity theft, phishing, and some of the other dangers the internet has due to its freedom. So his proposal would be Internet #1 which would be like it is today, and Internet #2 which would require an authenticated log-on (I thought we had this already with AOL?).
The problem that comes from this thinking is that technology usually isn’t the fix for these types of problems.
An analogy would be your ATM PIN. In order for your ATM card to be secure nobody is supposed to know your PIN. This makes your ATM card secure to be out in the wild world because it can’t be used without that PIN. Yet at most self service locations like gas stations and grocery stores, people don’t think about covering up their PIN when they enter it. Those same people will be sure to cover it up at the actual ATM machine though. It’s a mental thing, not a technology thing that is tripping up security in this case.
The same holds true for facets of internet security. If a person doesn’t pay attention when an email comes from an unknown source, or ignores the security tools (like pop-up blockers, “leaving secure page” warnings, image loading blocks on emails, phishing filters), then some new technology tool isn’t going to make the difference. The software tools help, but it’s the usage of those tools that really make a difference.
I think this will be a constant battle though between freedom and security and nothing well ever become a real “solution” that both sides will be happy with - but trying to find that happy medium is worth a bit of discourse so be sure to join in on it!

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