Data Breach
Jan. 21st, 2020 02:22 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmith This is what I mean when I say that once data is put in electronic form, and especially connected to the internet in any way, it is no longer secure. It is merely more or less convenient to steal. The very act of conglomerating large amounts of data makes it an irresistible target, and with scads of people trying to steal it, some will always succeed.
The best way to prevent that is not to create the target in the first place. Scattered data is too much work to gather enough to have any value. So for instance, instead of piling up medical records like a giant pile of treasure just waiting for a pirate, disperse each to its owner.
Another option, especially for sensitive data, is Secure On Paper Only. In fact, ribbon typewriters are reviving because they cannot be hacked.
So when you see a data breach, think of it as a sign that people can't be arsed to protect the information. There are ways. But the ways take more work, so people prefer to make targets and just hope they don't get hit.
The best way to prevent that is not to create the target in the first place. Scattered data is too much work to gather enough to have any value. So for instance, instead of piling up medical records like a giant pile of treasure just waiting for a pirate, disperse each to its owner.
Another option, especially for sensitive data, is Secure On Paper Only. In fact, ribbon typewriters are reviving because they cannot be hacked.
So when you see a data breach, think of it as a sign that people can't be arsed to protect the information. There are ways. But the ways take more work, so people prefer to make targets and just hope they don't get hit.
(no subject)
Date: 2020-01-21 12:20 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2020-01-21 01:22 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2020-01-24 04:23 am (UTC)Yes ...
Date: 2020-01-24 04:35 am (UTC)However, all pickup taps are vulnerable to audio interference -- waterfalls are a classic, but in this case either a keyboard track or a custom "silent" keyboard would work better. Of course, some people just like blasting death metal or Kiowa war chants at volume. If you wanted to be really sadistic, you could put on a tape of activist speeches. It's not like spooks are unbreakable.
(no subject)
Date: 2020-01-21 01:32 pm (UTC)And then there was the incident where a contractor who was burning the burn bags was audited. They turned off the incinerator where the burn bags were tossed and waited for it to cool, then dug through the ashes. There, in the bottom: completely intact burn bags. They'd thrown in so many burn bags that they squeezed out all the oxygen and the bags couldn't burn!
(no subject)
Date: 2020-01-21 02:59 pm (UTC)It easiest with the higher end machines because to get better impressions, they use a plastic ribbon with a carbon film coating. This makes *beautiful documents, but the ribbons only go thru the machine *once*. So you can read everything clearly from the ribbon.
(no subject)
Date: 2020-01-21 03:53 pm (UTC)Also, am I the only one to wonder if the hacker kept a copy of the information, for blackmail or to sell? Digital data is very Easy to copy...
Thoughts
Date: 2020-01-21 07:44 pm (UTC)That's not hacking. That's old-fashioned spying. It doesn't allow you to control and manipulate the machine or what it tells people. It requires that you physically break into (or legally finagle access to) the location and devices. That's much higher risk for lower reward, so it was done very rarely, and only for highest value government and business data.
Conversely, hacking can be done from a much wider range, making it safer, and it affects larger masses of data, making it more rewarding. So it's much more common, and no longer affects just the main players, but ordinary people.
>> It easiest with the higher end machines because to get better impressions, they use a plastic ribbon with a carbon film coating. This makes *beautiful documents, but the ribbons only go thru the machine *once*. So you can read everything clearly from the ribbon. <<
That should also make it easy to destroy. After you finish, pop the cartridge open and expose the ribbon reel. Feed one end into a shredder that could probably be the side of a stapler hung over a garbage can. Come on, I'm not even a mechanic and I can see how simple that would be. If it had no metal components, it could probably be microwaved instead. If you didn't have automatic options, you could just strip it with a razor or a wire brush: tedious but effective.
Security relies a lot how determined people are vs. how lazy they are.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2020-01-22 05:51 am (UTC)The carbon film ribbons should be easy to destroy in several ways. Burn them, dump them in a tank of solvent that will lift the "ink" from the plastic, dump them in a tank of solvent that dissolves the plastic, etc.
(no subject)
Date: 2020-01-21 05:04 pm (UTC)This one's an actual leak, though it may have been caught before it was exploited: Report: Adult Site Leaks Extremely Sensitive Data of Cam Models. Reminds me that I ought to write that up.
(no subject)
Date: 2020-01-22 03:20 am (UTC)Thoughts
Date: 2020-01-22 03:53 am (UTC)Instead, America prefers to sacrifice its children and civil rights in varying combinations.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2020-01-22 04:05 pm (UTC)