Computer Security, The Next 50 Years

bariswheel writes "Alan Cox, fellow at Red Hat Linux, gives a short-and-sweet talk at the European OSCON on the The Next 50 Years of Computer Security. Implementations of modularity, Trusted Computing hardware, 'separation of secrets,' and overcoming the challenge of users not reading dialog boxes, will be crucial milestones as we head on to the future. He states: "As security improves, we need to keep building things which are usable, which are turned on by default, which means understanding users is the target for the next 50 years. You don't buy a car with optional bumpers. You can have a steering wheel fitted if you like, but it comes with a spike by default." All of this has to be shipped in a way that doesn't stop the user from doing things."

Comments

Are you joking?

[baudbarf]

50 years... The world has enough viable hydrocarbon energy left for only 5 or 10 more years. It's amazing but true, the Internet was, indeed, just a passing fad... as were computers themselves, and electricity, and the horseless carriage, etc.

On a side note, here's something that tickled my brain the other day:

What I find fascinating is that in 150 years time, from as far back as Jules Verne, science fiction writers have explored almost every imaginable type of high technology, computer, robot, and space ship, as well as every concievable plot and story...

...except the one which has become our eventuality - a world who put every ounce of faith in its almighty petroleum god and woke up one morning to find it expended with a vital infrastructure which couldn't exist without it. Now THAT'S a plot!