Batman FTW

This is in no way related to class. I just found the cartoon really amusing.

Image courtesy http://ffffound.com/.

Im on a boat

This is the kind of material I find online when I get snowed in ... Extra credit for any student that can post a coherent comment about this video that relates back to the class materials.

Call for Interns

If you are a current or former student of mine interested in a summer internship working as a cyber intelligence analyst then drop me a line. I am especially interested in any students with foreign language skills.

Job Interviews and Facebook

With the start of classes just two short days away, its time for me to start blogging again. I've previously used this blog as a means to communicate with my students outside of the classroom and to comment on current information privacy and security news. The media is replete with stories on these topics. There are also a number of blogs that focus specifically on these topics - many of which are listed in my blogroll.

As I scanned the headlines today I noticed a number of items of interests. In particular, I noticed a story in the New York Times entitled More Employers Use Social Networks to Check Out Applicants. According to the article,

45 percent of employers questioned are using social networks to screen job candidates — more than double from a year earlier, when a similar survey found that just 22 percent of supervisors were researching potential hires on social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and LinkedIn.

The study also found that "35 percent of employers decided not to offer a job to a candidate based on the content uncovered on a social networking site."

The study stated that

More than half of the employers who participated in the survey said that provocative photos were the biggest factor contributing to a decision not to hire a potential employee, while 44 percent of employers pinpointed references to drinking and drug use as red flags. Other warning signs included bad-mouthing of previous employers and colleagues and poor online communication skills.

Im sure many students, especially seniors looking for jobs, already regularly clean up their facebook profiles and remove potentially incriminating material. This is certainly a good practice, but the broader questions remain.

Should employers be allowed to scan facebook profiles of potential employees? Are employers treading on shaky legal ground by denying jobs to qualified individuals based on information discovered in their facebook profiles? Is it fair to judge a candidate on material found within their facebook profile?

Syllabus Available

Ive activated our class Blackboard site and posted the syllabus. I know most of you are pre-occupied with moving-in, getting settled, and catching up with friends but if you have time to check out the syllabus please do. If you have any questions drop me a note.

Have a great move-in weekend, do not anything too stupid and I see you next week for our first class.

Summers Over

As summer draws to a close I can no longer put off the inevitable. Its time to review the COSC-011 syllabus and make the changes necessary to ensure this semster's class is a great one. The general focus and format of the class will remain the same. We will still examine the tension between privacy and security in the digital age. However, I plan on tweaking some of the readings and adding more interactive exercises to the course.

If any former or future students are following this blog please let me know if you have any suggestions for the pending semester. I'm looking forward to another exciting semester. Enjoy your last week of freedom and ill see you on campus September 2.

Heading to Tallin

I'm headed to the Cooperative Cyber Defense Center of Excellence's Conference on Cyber Warfare in Tallin, Estonia. The Conference is in mid-June and boasts an outstanding line-up of speakers - you can visit the website for more detailed information.

I'll be giving a presentation on historical analogies for cyberspace. Specifically, my colleague and I will examine if there are other alternatives to the oft discussed digital Pearl Harbor and cyber Katrina analogies. I am concerned about the current narrative surrounding cyberspace in general and am in particular concerned that policy makers are narrowly driven by fear of a massive cyber attack. It is my concern that this fear will drive over regulation and cause more problems than the regulation attempts to solve.

If this argument sounds familiar it should. Jonathan Zittrain outlined this same concept of the 'generative dilemma' in his book the Future of the Internet.

Administravia

A couple of administrative points. If anyone has any questions about the mid-term do not hesitate to drop me an email. I'll be available all weekend if anything comes up. Additionally, we're now moving into the Information Security portion of the class. For those that feel as though we've worn the Privacy track thin this will be a welcome relief. Finally, we're about half way through the semester and many students have yet to post any items to the blog. Do not wait until the last day of class to do this as it will distract you from writing your final paper.

Privacy: A Debate No Longer

Our guest speaker, Brian Drake, kept his promise and provided an excellent write up of his talk. Please take a moment and review his write up hosted on his blog.

Mid-Term Time

Please answer one question from Section I, one questions from Section II, and one questions from Section III. Please pay careful attention to the word limits. Exams are due to me via email at the beginning of class on February 23, 2009. Late submissions will be penalized.

Answers will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• the use of lessons learned from our readings, discussions, and relevant outside sources
• creativity and original thinking
  
• the clarity and conciseness of your writing

Section I: You must answer one of the following questions.
A. Discuss the impact of Moore's Law on privacy. What risks does Moore's Law present to privacy? What are the potential rewards? How has Moore's Law changed definitions of privacy? (750 word limit)

B. How have definitions of privacy changed throughout history? How do you think definitions of privacy will change in the future? (750 word limit)

Section II: You must answer one of the following questions
A. design a comprehensive national privacy law. Explain the fundamental tenants of your privacy law? What legal protections would you include? (500 word limit)

B. How does the eightmaps website impact privacy? Are privacy and transparency mutually exclusive goals in this case? What privacy protections can be implemented to ensure that the reuse of personal information from political donor rolls does not have a chilling effect on participation in the political process? (500 word limit)

Section III: You must answer one of the following questions
A. What is the function of Google's new Latitude Service? Does it harm privacy? If so, how? If not, why not? (250 word limit)

B. Do social networking sites like Facebook or MySpace harm or protect privacy? (250 word limit)

Welcome

Welcome students! I intend to use this blog a compliment to our in class lectures and discussions. While I rarely have epiphany's or thoughts that merit our attention, it behooves me to create a forum to record these thoughts as I am certain they will not always come to me during class.

I will also post links to interesting articles here that will not be required but rather recommended reading. Please make it a point to drop by this blog on a weekly basis, check in on the recommended readings, and post your comments or questions as you see fit.

I look forward to exploring the exciting realm of Information Privacy with you. I run an open class and welcome your feedback whether positive or negative.

Sincerely,
Ned