Easy Access to an Account

Username: username
Password: password

The username and password of a log in are supposed to be unique. When a password is on a list of the 25 most common passwords of 2013, it is time to switch. In a book called The Cuckoo's Egg, Cliff showed that the main reason a computer and data is compromised is because a username and password were easy to guess. His solution to these attacks was simply to create unique passwords, and specifically a password that is not found in a common dictionary. Looking at the list shows that we are still not creating unique passwords after twenty years of the internet. At least many are not in the dictionary like "trustno1."

I would often think about work while reading the book as we have a simple username and password to guess in order to access a public computer account. Gigabytes of sensitive information would be accessible on thousands of people if someone were to access it. Luckily the most important data is behind another username and password. Still, as shown in the book, simple programs can find the email addresses of important individuals, then read them until the right information is needed to access the critical data. This form of attack is not some crazy person doing it for one night, it is done over a long period of time.

What We Bring to the Table

Ready for 45% unemployment rate in the United States? Oxford calculates that computers will pioneer such a future in the next twenty years. What can't robots and computers do? Many things, most of which involve the enthusiasm and creative process of humans. Humans possess common knowledge and though processes which don't make sense in bits. Out interactions are fueled by emotions which defies all logic. These traits of creativity produce monumental success in the world. Developing these will help us keep our jobs and maybe get us a promotion to boot.

WORST POST EVER!

"This guy has no clue what anything is about and needs to be shot to keep him from ever making such a terrible post again!" 

Comments like this plague the Internet. It has gotten so bad that companies like Google decided that comments on Youtube need to be filtered by relativity. Google tried to make it so our real names would be posted with our comments. It turns out though that I can now sue people for such comments. I don't want to but the culture of the Internet has become one where we don't take responsibility for the words we say. Suing the people who decide to make comments that are intentionally hurtful introduces consequences for the things we say, just like in the real world. Matt Smith said in his article, "Internet exists in the real world, not a fantasy-land of limitless free speech." How true that is.