North American Network Operators Group Date Prev | Date Next | Date Index | Thread Index | Author Index | Historical Re: Worms versus Bots
On Tue, 04 May 2004 16:58:40 PDT, chuck goolsbee <[email protected]> said: > > At 4:19 PM -0500 5/4/04, Laurence F. Sheldon, Jr. wrote: > >chuck goolsbee wrote: > > > >>>However, up to 90% of the users *are* stupid: > > I didn't say that, I only quoted (Valdis Kletnieks) it... to which I > replied that compensating for stupidity is a zero-sum game. On Mon, 03 May 2004 20:53:50 PDT, Michel Py said: > In other words: if one is stupid, one gets worm'ed or bot'ed. My error - what I meant was "However, by that definition, 90% are stupid". In fact, I'm in agreement with Steve Bellovin - either the users need to master the technology (which isn't going to happen), or we need to fix the design and HCI factors so that what ships *is* something that's actually usable. > So maybe they WOULD be better with a "WebTV" model. Have to admit, that model *does* solve the HCI issues.. > Or a Macintosh. Actually, there's multiple solutions - remember that monocultures are bad. :) > Perhaps there is a market for "safe Internet access"... I don't know. > But I suspect the barrier to entry is either making it work with the > dominant platform, or asking the market take the leap to another > platform. Both are unlikely. What I do know is that the dominant > platform is inherently insecure, and many of its users, those > "non-technical" folks I referred to... they seem to be mostly unaware > of the danger they pose to themselves and everyone else on the > Network. The trick here is realizing that compensating for stupidity doesn't have to be a zero-sum game. Today's window of opportunity: "Microsoft is expected to recommend that the "average" Longhorn PC feature a dual-core CPU running at 4 to 6GHz; a minimum of 2 gigs of RAM; up to a terabyte of storage; a 1 Gbit, built-in, Ethernet-wired port and an 802.11g wireless link; and a graphics processor that runs three times faster than those on the market today." http://www.microsoft-watch.com/article2/0,1995,1581842,00.asp So you have several years to convince people that there are cheaper/free solutions that are more secure *and* don't require a forklift upgrade.... Attachment:
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