Schneier on Security

One of the best books I’ve read this year is by a security technologist, Bruce Schneier. In Liars and Outliers, he sets out to investigate how trust works in society and in business, how it is betrayed and the degree to which technology changes all of that, for the better or the worse.

Schneier absolutely understands how profoundly trust oils the wheels of business and of daily life. “The more customers trust merchants, the more business gets done. The more drivers trust each other, the smoother the traffic.” Trust is what allows us to deal with strangers, to expand our horizons and our companies. It is like the air that we breathe: Invisible but essential. That is invisible may mean that we don’t consider how powerfully it could work for companies if it were considered an asset, capable of generating growth and loyalty…