I Hate Crackers....

I just read an article by Bill Machrone (PC Magazine) about the dangers of leaving machines and other hardware vulnerable to crackers. Specifically, he mentioned that some routers provide information that crackers can use to expliot your network. Machrone went on to warn that security was a never-ending battle, and that products that are secure today “may be swiss-cheese” tomorrow.

I feel as if I am the only one who feels this is unacceptable. Imagine if the same situtation existed in the real world. If you’re walking home from work and get mugged, it’s your fault for not carrying mace. If you’re shot during a burglury, shame on you for not wearing your kevlar vest. Of course, we don’t really react that way, for a number of reasons. Primarilly. it is more efficient to control the deviant behavior of a few than to force an entire population to buy mace and kevlar vests and live in fear.

While it is possible to create buildings that are virtually impregnable, the costs are usually pretty high. The same can be said for software. Every dollar (or hour of someone’s time) that is spent frantically combatting crackers is time and money lost. This kind of economic drain is wasteful not only because of the time and money put into it, but because of the lack of results! As long as software and systems have to interoperate and communicate, systems will always be vulnerable. So, crackers, instead of doing the cyber-equivalent of poking someone in the neck with a stick, get a life.