Freakonomics Q&A With Bruce Schneier

Samrobb writes "In grand Slashdot tradition, the Freakonomics blog solicited reader questions for a Q&A session with Bruce Schneier. The blog host writes that Mr. Schneier's answers '...are extraordinarily interesting, providing mandatory reading for anyone who uses a computer. He also plainly thinks like an economist: search below for "crime pays" to see his sober assessment of why it's better to earn a living as a security expert than as a computer criminal.'" The interview covers pretty much the whole range of issues Schneier has written about, and he provides links to more detailed writings on many of the questions.

The more things change...

[linuxwrangler]

"...In 1957, fifty years ago, there were fewer than 2,000 computers total, and they were essentially used to crunch numbers. They were huge, expensive, and unreliable; sometimes, they caught on fire..."

Well, now they are small, inexpensive, and relatively reliable. But at least they still sometimes catch on fire.

But first, make sure you have the Bruce facts

[sien]

To get the most out of this interview, make sure you have the facts [geekz.co.uk] on Bruce Schneier. The man is not what he seems.

FTA: several websites

[mseidl]

There are several Web sites where I pay for access, and I have the same password for all of them.

And these sites have content, content which gets stored under /.pr0n

Best Answer

[Odin_Tiger]

Q: I recently had an experience on eBay in which a hacker copied and pasted an exact copy of my selling page with the intention of routing payments to himself. Afterwards, people informed me that such mischief is not uncommon. How can I ensure that it doesn't happen again?

A: You can't. The attack had nothing to do with you. Anyone with a browser can copy your HTML code -- if they couldn't, they couldn't see your page -- and repost it at another URL. Welcome to the Internet.

Poor Bruce must get awful tired of answering questions from people who don't understand how computers, etc. actually work.

Re:The more things change...

[spun]

Well, now they are small, inexpensive, and relatively reliable. But at least they still sometimes catch on fire.

That's exactly what I tell my computers when they act up, "Computers still sometimes catch on fire, you know." I keep a charred motherboard hanging on the wall in the server room, just to remind them. Helps keep the buggers running right.

Re:A billion times...

[AuntieWillow]

FTA:

However, I wonder if software will be advanced enough by then to have AI agents assisting you like most sci-fi flicks. Usually software is the barrier in computing. Programmers are slow.

Programmers are slow because, like me, they're probably surfing /. :-)

Re:Too many to answer -- I'm not impressed however

[jjohnson]

This person needs to learn more about security

You think Bruce Schneier needs to learn more about security?

Re:The more things change...

[tm2b]

"The Aperture Science Center would like to remind you that Android Hell is a real place, and you will be sent there at the first sign of disobedience."

Re:But first, make sure you have the Bruce facts

[calebt3]

Chuck Norris

Re:/. Mods are Jew Rats

[Anonymous Coward]

Ok... eating a dude's shit turns you on. What about eating a girl's turd? If you found a nice big cosby kid in a toilet, not knowing the gender of the person, would you eat it?

He's a Mac user. Of course not.

Re:strange answer on wireless

[flaming error]

It only seems risky until you learn that Bruce Schneier types in TwoFish.

Re:But first, make sure you have the Bruce facts

[JK_the_Slacker]

I'm not sure, but I do know that Jason Bourne would limp away.

Oh, and don't forget about the explosion that almost (ALMOST) kills John McClane.

Re:strange answer on wireless

[alexborges]

My friend. The point is that is almost as easy to get data from a suposedly "encrypted" (weak ass encryption) wifi connection, as to do it from an unencrypted one.

And I mean... what is this, Mr. SEAL, although you have an enviable 5 digit slashdot ID, im gonna HAVE to go with bruce on this one.... hell, id go with bruce on all the rest-of-them as well.

Re:strange answer on wireless

[Brickwall]

It only seems risky until you learn that Bruce Schneier types in TwoFish.

Gee, what happened to OneFish, and the RedFish and BlueFish?