Schneier on Security

In America today, we find ourselves increasingly living in a new kind of country: where constant surveillance and paramilitary policing are normalized. Bruce Schneier is among the most insightful and important voices speaking out against unchecked government surveillance and the alarming lack of transparency among our democratic institutions.

Listen to the Audio on InsideCVille.com

Revelations of the NSA’s data surveillance efforts have raised serious questions about the ethics and necessity of violating privacy that have been bubbling under the surface for some time. Efforts to monitor communication are nothing new, but electronically mediated communication has increased the amount of information being shared, and the possibilities for eavesdropping are endless. But there’s a trade off. People tolerate incursions into privacy for greater security or even convenience: health care, transportation, public safety, or any number of web utilities we use on a daily basis. Bruce Schneier is an author, Berkman fellow, and security technologist. He sat down with David Weinberger to talk about the positives and perils of privacy violation…

Bruce Schneier, author and security guru, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about power and the internet. Schneier argues that the internet enhances the power of the powerless but it also enhances the power of the powerful. He argues that we should be worried about both corporate and government uses of the internet to enhance their power. Recorded before news of the PRISM system and the use of Verizon’s customer information by the NSA (National Security Agency), Schneier presciently worries about government surveillance that we are not aware of and explains how governments—democratic and totalitarian—can use the internet to oppress their citizens. The conversation closes with a discussion of terrorism and the costs of the current system for reducing the probability of a terrorist attack…

This is a feature cast, an episode of The Command Line Podcast.

The feature this week is an interview with Bruce Schneier. The catalyst for this conversation is a post on his blog that frames out some of the themes he has been considering for his next book. Among other things, we refer to Rebecca Mackinnon’s book and Kevin Kelly’s most recent book in the course of the conversation. You can find all of Bruce’s books here.

Listen to the Audio on TheCommandLine.net

With news outlets flooded with talk of advanced targeted threats and Mandiant’s recently released APT1 report, we wanted to know what industry experts thought of the security industry today.

We sat down and spoke with Bruce Schneier about his thoughts on where the security industry is going and to get insight into his new book he is working on. "Cyberwar is based on fear and rhetoric", according to Schneier, "and it is damaging for us to push war rhetoric because it makes us feel helpless." He goes on to say that if we feel a sense of helplessness we naturally can’t do anything to protect our systems. It requires a shift in how we view the situation…