Security Di Maa Di (
Hot & breaking events as I think over the past week!
- ISRO launched 20 satellites at one go! <clap clap>
- Pre-monsoon showers cooled the country.
In the face of such joy – one Mr Yadav has heated up the wires and brought our national “ban” genes out in the warzone again. He has filed a PIL asking the SC to ban Whatsapp in the interest of national security. His fear is that encrypted messages are a terrorist’s weapon <bah> (how he knows I don’t know!) My question is why only terrorist messages have to be decrypted what about stalkers, gf/bf, divorces, dost-dost-na-raha etc.
Doesn’t he or anyone in his family use Whatsapp? Doesn’t he realize how many dreams will be busted because LEA and Govt departments and private sector and aunties and babies have come to depend on WA for sharing pictures, gyaan, documents and more. This may be more anti-national J
The moot point is that I don’t understand why people spend money on regressive and fruitless chases. Once someone asked for a ban on Google, then on maps and then on porn sites and then on skirts and on food and this and that. No reality check needed, just wear your dhoti and go ban banaa ban ban!!
Can’t the powers-that-be apply their mind and create a “good” and “well thought” out policy that can be applied effectively. Then all this crap can be washed away; in simple terms –make a policy to address encryption in communication and the need for information sharing and enforce it. I can bet that the firang companies will comply, desis are desh bhakts anyway <LMAO> and above some laws as per their social pecking order.
Brexit also is hot, I mention it in passing as it does not seem to have raised concerns for the infosec business – more remains to be seen. Yes, their PM has resigned and the world is having fun with EU the exit aspirations of member exit names.
Father of victim of Paris attacks has sued Google, Twittter, Facebook over hosting of ISIS content
Security Di Maa Di (Udh Gayee Security)
Udta Punjab udha diya …All of us were avidly following the censor board fight and then got a below-the-belt-punch (BBP) with the move being leaked. The headlines claimed the culprit was caught but on closer inspection it seems this guy was uploading the movie to another site after having downloaded it. Hey, Mr Cop, please tell us about the 20 persons that you had identified as “suspects” on day-1 please do not obfuscate the crime scene.
Bank of Baroda came up in a conversation where I learned about their lax log retention policy. Now that RBI has a cyber security czar can we hope that such errant banks will face summary execution by audit squads. These guys are shameless – first they carried out a big hawala / forex scam and now this – someone from Baroda / Vadodara must file a PIL to get their name changed.
In any case, we, common people have a lot more to be worried about –
Much ado over Mark Z’s sticky tape – The world went nuts when a photo of Mark Z showed he has put tape on his laptop camera. Guys, he’s human too and as much a target as any other man!
We are living in risky times even though we tell ourselves how advanced we are! Lets look at the advancement which makes me want to retire to Rishikesh/Dharamsala:
My TV : now carries a ransomware risk and can be locked (aww my fav program is gone and I shall have to buy a new TV)
My Car: After Jeep, GM now the Mitsubishi-Outlander is another car on which a hack has been demonstrated. While all TVs in the country may not be smart, the cars are so we better be careful!
My refrigerator: this has already been used to send malicious mails – what will it do next.. only my fridge knows.
My Air India FF Miles: hacker stole and used Rs 16 lakh fraudulently and these buggers send me a mail that my 1600 miles have expired. I tell u the common man never has it okay. High time to get into big business like Mallya.
My Facebook account: Facebook accounts are at risk as one research report says it can be hacked just by knowing a phone number and exploiting the SS7 protocol (!! Are we serious about security!!)
As if ransomware on TV was not enough we now have 10% pure Javascript flavored ransomware; and we live with the disclosure of vulnerable routers from CISCO (wifi router open to attack and no patch available for the RV range of business wifi routers); Citrix -GoTOMyPC hack; Team Viewer hack ..oh God.
And the anti virus is rendered useless against Hercules the latest malware that promises to live up to it’s name and be all powerful and bust Win10, and 7 and 8. So now the anti-virus cannot defend the common man too.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the next big thing arriving on the technology scene with IoT. It’s cousins Big Data, Data Analytics, Lakes and Oceans are here. AI promises to make us more redundant, dependent, or efficient (depends on how you look at it or what you are selling). Illustrious people have warned us against AI but we are human and we continue our quest to meet our destiny. AI will gift us robots who will help make us R, D, or E but then what will happen when Robots will kill or take away jobs (as warned by exRBI Gov). This week I saw a lot of robotic activity..
Killer Robots may be a reality ! Managing The Rise Of The Killer Robots and there have already been deaths reported on the assembly line where humans have been working with robots.
Shape of things to come:
Biometrics took our fingerprints, irises and voice. Now they want our sense of smell. What next is anyone’s guess – fart, sweat, spit, dandruff. I guess beware of dogs will take a new meaning.
Of course our behavior too. So be careful the next time you lose your temper or write on a Friday – Big Brother’s analytic antenna will be pinging with every character or breath you take and doing a Behavior Analysis a la Minority report!
Brain machine interface is happening and maybe we shall stop typing and be able to do our work just by thinking.
Continuing to shock and awe you – do you know that the FBI has 411 million photographs in their database. Maybe you are privileged to be one of them.
The Verizon DBIR 2016 was released this week and it is interesting to read
Robotics – the writing is on the wall:
Robotics is growing and how – through the use of drones and machines for various types of functions and this will be interesting to know
Russia is Working On Subsea Robots For Arctic Miningas unmanned submersibles intended to support drilling operations;Chinese UAVs See Action In Myanmarand the drones are everywhere as well as used in clashes with ethnic rebels for counter-insurgency operations; and in Vegas…Flying Robot Taxis from China have been granted permission to conduct testing for people-carrying autonomous drones;Polish Police Now Has New Robots“Taktyczny Robot Miotany” that can be thrown around;Israeli Air Force UAVs, Aircrafts and Ships Jointly Protect Israel’s EEZ
(IAF) will not be able to count only on UAVs when the mission is protecting
Trending:
- Bangladesh Bank terminated the services of FireEye who were investigating the $ 81million hack – saying the cost is too high. We understand what it is to throw good money after lost <LOL> and of course they may never know who pwnd them. I daresay FireEye did not tell them “dhoontey rahoonga, tum detey rehna(money)” (we’ll keep searching and you can keep paying). Short lived honeymoon.
- Russia – is blamed for the DNC hack which exposed the US Demoncratic party’s research on Trump
- China & Pakistan – on the NSG discussions. Pakistan talks about being on the same level as India and I just dropped laughing. Chaina – always a pain the A. Even after getting the NaMo treatment they did their own shit.
Tiring:
When I read this in the TOIand this on ISMG…I just got depressed. Our dear NCSC announced a five point program.. and I tell myself… Oh no! Not again. The same clichés or as the article says – old wine new bottle:
- International framework (bro’ what about domestic framework. Pehle apna ghar to theek karein);
- User awareness (lots happening all over the country and NCSC office can do wonders if it joins hands with the independent players);
- Make in India for hw/sw (hum hongey kaamyab jab PSU and GoI support karega. Present Startup and other initiatives have not even looked at Security through a binocular!);
- Issues of people, process and technologies (frankly this went over me, this is beyond me);
- Capacity building – security-by-design – skill development (sahee! 1 Number)
The reason I find this tiring, I have been waiting for long for NCSC to address these same issues which he said to me three years back! I shall surely write about this again.
Now I got to take rest as this is too much for me. Maybe it is time to write an open letter to the GoI again.
In any case, the new week has started and there is already a lot of action! I wish you a happy weekend. Take care and remember – security di maa di!
