Schneier on Security

No Licence • December 16, 2006 4:50 PM

@Bruce

Nice interview.

“Microsoft … have an enormous amount of legacy code … it may take 10 / 15 years before a security practice that is known to be good gets into every piece of code …”

You noted that Microsoft are really trying to improve their code security but noted the tendency of code to become more complex as new software tries to do more and more. IMHO it’s worse than that. Microsoft seem to me to be intent on introducing new proprietary data format standards and tight integration between their suite of products which tends to enhance their consumer product appeal while locking out competitors to maintain their monopoly. Microsoft, quite sensibly, place more importance on their survival than consumer security.

@Sentinel

“There’s still a TV tax here (in the UK) and it looks like there always will be…”

I’m not so sure. Speaking as one that doesn’t have a TV at home, in the UK, I think the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) have a bit of a problem on their hands. The technology used to recieve TV programs is rapidly expanding to include PCs (broadband reception), mobile phones and hybrid ‘media centre’ devices.

Currently, the BBC’s strategy is to try to collect licence payments from the new technology but as the distinction between computers/TV/media recorders and mobile media devices start to blur it will be harder and harder for the BBC to keep collecting the cash.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/03/03/pc_tax/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/02/13/tv_licence_mobile/
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,542-1511206,00.html
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1508650,00.html
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&refer=columnist_lynn&sid=aCYfq8dfKG8Q

During the last World Cup, I discovered after the event that I may have been breaking the law by watching some football clips on the BBC sports pages. There was no warning on the BBC site about this and I’m not sure how I am supposed to determine TV content versus web contect on the BBC web site.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/06/09/internet_tv_licence/

In the future, the BBC licence model will surely have to change. There could hardly be a clearer example of law and technology being out of step with one another.