New Scientist: UK bill would infringe scientists' freedom
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns1944 UK bill would infringe scientists' freedom 14:30 18 February 02 ... For decades, controls have existed on the transfer of physical goods on the dual-use list - a list, recognised by the international community, of technologies that could have both civilian and military uses. ... The problem of the dual list is that it contains anything that the MOD thinks is high-tech, explains Anderson. This can include anything from semiconductor testing equipment and hard composites to certain types of catalyst, he says. It would also include types of software that many researchers have posted on their websites, such as cryptoanalytic or code-breaking programmes. Such postings could become illegal overnight. ... -- * Jim Cheesman * Trabajo: [EMAIL PROTECTED] - (34)(91) 724 9200 x 2360 It was all so different before everything changed. - The Cryptography Mailing List Unsubscribe by sending unsubscribe cryptography to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
aibo and the dmca
themselves. In a recent article in the Yomiuri Shimbun, another Japanese newspaper, Yoshimi Nagamine writes: It is up to each person whether they empathize with Aibo or simply get caught up in the fun of tinkering with it. Of course, there are obsessive fans everywhere. But, in the world of Aibo, there is a great difference between Japanese and U.S. owners' relationships with the robot pet. AiboPet disputes this distinction. The majority of Japanese owners use Aibo in standard ways, he says, adding that there are still a large number of Japanese owners who use my enhancements, based on downloads and e-mails. It may be that there is no real distinction between those who empathize with Aibo and those who tinker with him. Boutchia says, I love the 'virtual pet' aspect of Aibo, but I also love the tech side. There are, however, undoubtedly some differences in style between Aibo owners in the U.S. and Japan. The Yomiuri Shimbun article concludes that having a robot as a pet makes one ponder the philosophical injunction-'know yourself more deeply.' Meanwhile, back in America, some owners delight in replacing Aibo's soothing beeps with the voice of Cartman, the potty-mouthed South Park character. For the time being Sony and AiboPet can work together. Sony permits AiboPet to distribute his experimental software, and AiboPet permits Sony to adapt it and sell it, should they ever choose to do so. I believe many features and ideas of mine have already snuck into the official product line, AiboPet says on his Web site. I'm not complaining-I'm flattered. From the user's perspective, though, it is hard to imagine that many other software designers will be eager to extend Aibo's skills under those conditions. Indeed, it is difficult to imagine that as robots gain capabilities and acceptance, their owners will be content to choose among the behavioral options provided by just one source. For the moment it is in Sony's interest to allow users to modify their robots, but that could change at any time so long as reverse-engineering for compatibility is illegal in the digital realm. Someday we may all want robots in our homes. And if the maker's software isn't a good match for the end-user's personality-think of Han Solo's irritation with C-3PO-there will be a powerful incentive to turn to hackers like AiboPet. -- * Jim Cheesman * Trabajo: [EMAIL PROTECTED] - (34)(91) 724 9200 x 2360 Where did Vincent Van Gogh? - The Cryptography Mailing List Unsubscribe by sending unsubscribe cryptography to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: password-cracking by journalists...
At 03:15 PM 16/01/02, Steve Bellovin wrote: A couple of months ago, a Wall Street Journal reporter bought two abandoned al Qaeda computers from a looter in Kabul. Some of the files on those machines were encrypted. But they're dealing with that problem: The unsigned report, protected by a complex password, was created on Aug. 19, according to the Kabul computer's internal record. The Wall Street Journal commissioned an array of high-speed computers programmed to crack passwords. They took five days to access the file. Does anyone have any technical details on this? (I assume that it's a standard password-guessing approach, but it it would be nice to know for certain. If nothing else, are Arabic passwords easier or harder to guess than, say, English ones?) Most Arabic words have a root of 3 letters, to which prefixes, suffixes and vowels are added: the root drs for example is related to books and teaching: madrasa is a school, mudaris a teacher, etc. (It's been a while since I studied any Arabic, so I aplogise for errors here.) Of more use (I would have thought) is the fact that the Coran has a limited and standardised vocabulary (unlike the Bible, for example, which has many versions, both modern and old.) That would certainly speed up any dictionary search - assuming that any password/phrase came from the Coran, of course. Jim -- * Jim Cheesman * Trabajo: [EMAIL PROTECTED] - (34)(91) 724 9200 x 2360 If there's one thing I can't stand, it's intolerance. - The Cryptography Mailing List Unsubscribe by sending unsubscribe cryptography to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: High-tech Thieves Snatch Data From ATMs
Something similar happened in England a few years back: Some cybercrooks* set up an entire false bank - only the shop frontage and the cash machine, which would display the customary Sorry this service not available blah blah blah message if the user tried to get cash out. I believe the bank was Nationwide, and that the scam run for at least a month before anyone caught on. I currently have no web access, so no links, no details - sorry. *Why cybercrooks? Best, Jim At 09:32 PM 10/01/02, R. A. Hettinga wrote: http://dailynews.yahoo.com/htx/abc/20020110/bs/atmfraud020110_1.html Thursday January 10 03:26 PM EST High-tech Thieves Snatch Data From ATMs By Paul Eng ABCNEWS.com ... -- * Jim Cheesman * Trabajo: [EMAIL PROTECTED] - (34)(91) 724 9200 x 2360 The shortest distance between two points is how far apart they are. - The Cryptography Mailing List Unsubscribe by sending unsubscribe cryptography to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
