[LINK] Security efforts hindered by untrained users

[Alana Maurushat]

Alright.  Time for my very first contribution to Link and *gasp* *choke*
as a lawyer and luddite = someone who is frustrated easily by technology
designed without the user in mind (the reason why I purchased a Mac a
few months back).

I find it easier to understand how the Storm Worm propagates than I do
trying to figure out whether I am actually using a secure site, or what
the heck anything from the Active X Control means. As for pop-ups, where
do I start: 1) they immediately scare me and even deter me from what I
am doing at times - well, if it involves money, 2) there's no way of
knowing if the pop-up is from a trusted source and 3) you need technical
support to follow the instructions, and 4)even if you perform all acts
in a secure manner, then the original application is no longer available
to you.  Could there be anything more frustrating!

Could you imagine putting your toast in the toaster but before doing so,
you are prompted to check to see if your toaster is plugged in, is the
circuit working, would you like it semi-toasted on one side, black on
the other, is this really the toaster you want to use, etc.  Then you do
everything only to find out that you can no longer make toast!  

Because this is what it's like for the average user of technologies.
Market the technologies as complex, but PLEASE make them simple to work.
Current security measures are the scourge of the Internet from a user
perspective.  We simply don't know who or what to trust anymore.

I say this honestly, and would love to hear on how you think this could
be improved upon.

Alana
FYI:  Currently writing PhD in legal, ethical, and technical dimensions
of botnets.


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Sent: Thursday, 31 January 2008 12:03 PM
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Subject: Link Digest, Vol 182, Issue 56

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Today's Topics:

   1. Bookkeeping (was Re: [LINK] Security efforts hindered by
      untrained users) (Stilgherrian)


----------------------------------------------------------------------

Message: 1
Date: Thu, 31 Jan 2008 11:49:57 +1100
From: Stilgherrian <stil at stilgherrian.com>
Subject: Bookkeeping (was Re: [LINK] Security efforts hindered by
	untrained users)
To: The Link Institute <link at anu.edu.au>
Message-ID: <C3C76665.70E8C%stil at stilgherrian.com>
Content-Type: text/plain;	charset="US-ASCII"




On 31/1/08 11:36 AM, "Howard Lowndes" <lannet at lannet.com.au> wrote:
> What's hard about it?  My bookkeeping lecturer told me:
> 
> "Debits on the left, Credits on the right"  :)
> 
> I must admit that it took me a while to appreciate that debtors are an
> asset, and that Cash and Bank are a debit.   :)

This is another case where you can blame those b&$%tards at the bank.

They send you a statement of account written from *their* point of view
as a
bank, not ours as the customer. So we're constantly shown data that's
"the
wrong way around".

No wonder it's confusing.

Stil


-- 
Stilgherrian http://stilgherrian.com/
Internet, IT and Media Consulting, Sydney, Australia
mobile +61 407 623 600
fax +61 2 9516 5630
ABN 25 231 641 421







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