Happy fallout of Keystroke loggers

Amit Varma writes about an initiative of the Mumbai police that would cause such distress in the population that the terrorists may be popping champagne:

A few days ago, Mumbai’s police revealed their plans to install keystroke loggers in Mumbai’s cyber cafes, besides imposing licensing requirements on them.

This is done ostensibly to fight terrorism, and here are the implications for you and me. Whenever we surf from a Mumbai cyber café, everything we type will automatically be captured on record. Our email passwords, every message we type, the sites we visit, the pictures we download: everything will be stored in police records, rendering us, effectively, naked in their eyes.

India’s Cops Get Orwellian - The India Uncut Blog

However, things might actually turn out a lot happier for everybody, if you carefully consider the implications.

If the police enforce it aggressively, it might popularize:

1. OpenID, thus avoiding login at individual sites. I shall provide a low cost OpenID service with a mouse activated onscreen keyboard. :-) Yes, with randomized layouts, in case mouse trails are also logged.
2. Skype and other voice and video services.
3. The sign language over Skype. Thus making communication easier for the hearing impaired in the non-virtual world, with wider benefits to society.
4. Touch screens, light pens and other types of digitizers.

Cyber cafes might vertically separate into two business lines:

     (a)  WiFi service providers,  and

     (b)  laptop renting services.

This is to be welcomed. Internet cafes forcing you to rent their outdated PC's, or regular cafes renting their expensive WiFi are both unholy economic alliances.

The credit card companies would have to smarten up and improve security, if they wish to survive. No citizen groups could have forced them to do it, without this initiative by the police.

With so many things to look forward to, we really need to worry about any rearguard action to derail the scheme.

Two likely groups of spoilsports are:

1. The policemen, who'd refuse order to scan the cyber logs. And I don't blame them because it would be the most extreme form of torture. How many million lines of "hi, wassup?" can anybody endure?
2. The lawyers, who might have it declared against the law.

Whatever, there's sure to be fun in days to come.

 

Technorati tags: terrorist, cyber crime, keylogger, Mumbai police, police, cyber cafe

What is Bareng2?

An initiative to garner links. It's supposed to work pretty much like all such initiatives do:

We all know how important getting link backs is and with this chain, you can get the ball rolling! You don’t have to be an established blogger to take part in this chain.Here are the rules:
1. Copy this post from the point where it says “Start Copy Here” to the point where it says “End Copy Here”
2. Add yourself and 5 of your favorite bloggers to the end of the list.
3. Post this on your blog

The Life of Socrates: Bareng2 Increasing Your Traffic :))

However, instead of following the instructions exactly as given, I left a comment as follows:

Would it work? Unless:

1. I have a good number of readers already, and 
2. Some percentage of these readers follow my request to link to you.

I'd like to give you more than a dead-end link from me. Help me get a little readership by including me in your list of 5 bloggers friends and then I link to you.

 

Was this comment was noticed by Nanyaar, or did he just link to me minutes later quite independently?

I got to know Nanyaar while experimenting with my first posts from BlogCamp in Chennai last year. He happened to be waiting at the airport and following the conference online.

Great to hear from you, Nanyaar!

Here are a few links:

1. Is there no sin in it?   No longer updated, but there are some awesome posts.
2. Out There  Hasn't been a post from Elizabeth Starr Hill, who wrote the most exquisite posts about nature and people. I hope she is happy and well, even if not blogging.

Oops, I was supposed to find five bloggers and notify them about the links, then why have I listed only two discontinued blogs!

Just keeping space for anybody else who notices my offer :-)

 

 

Technorati tags: BlogDay2007

Neutralizing the terrorists

In the wake of recent bomb explosions in Hyderabad, the Times of India has run a series editorials evaluating the adequacy of our response to terrorist actions.

Apart from its practical aspects, targeting terrorism through special laws is a declaration of intent and signals the political and societal resolve to take on an enemy. It's a call to arms and tells those on the frontline that the authorities recognise the nature of beast and are prepared to confront it. That there will be no half-measures in a war against opponents who do not believe in dialogue, rather are convinced that their cause will be served by killing innocents.

Source: 'What other nations are doing to curb terror'-India-The Times of India

Elsewhere too, there is discussion--in media, blogs and around water coolers--about how we ought to protect the ourselves from future risk.

Exactly one year ago, Bruce Schneier wrote on Wired.com about the nature of the beast and how to confront it. It's a must read in its entirety for anybody thinking about ways to tackle terror, and what NOT to do.

Our politicians help the terrorists every time they use fear as a campaign tactic. The press helps every time it writes scare stories about the plot and the threat. And if we're terrified, and we share that fear, we help. All of these actions intensify and repeat the terrorists' actions, and increase the effects of their terror.

Source: Refuse to be Terrorized

The 24 hour news channels are especially given to sensationalism, because such reporting apparently attracts audience. 

However, playing on the fears of the public, in the case of terrorist acts, is equivalent to playing into the hands of the terrorists.

 

Technorati tags: terror, terrorist, terror response, blast, Hyderabad, sensationalism

Can an agnostic be canonised?

It appears that Mother Teresa's crisis of faith won't affect her chances of achieving sainthood:

Mother Teresa has already been beatified, said Monsignor Robert Sarno, who is in charge of her case at the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. For her canonisation as a saint, she now requires one more verified miracle. Mgr Sarno said it was not surprising that Mother Teresa had, at times, turned away from God.

Mother Teresa's canonisation not at risk - Telegraph

Apparently she wasn't an agnostic, but a devout believer who didn't find evidence of God in her life.

 

Technorati tags: crisis of faith, canonization, canonisation, Mother Teresa, agnostic

Mother Teresa's Crisis of Faith

Richard Dawkins must be delighted to hear these revelations:

Jesus has a very special love for you. As for me, the silence and the emptiness is so great that I look and do not see, listen and do not hear.
— Mother Teresa to the Rev. Michael Van Der Peet, September 1979

Mother Teresa's Crisis of Faith - TIME

He may now want to moderate comments about her in his bestseller The God Delusion.

I wonder if such views of Mother Teresa's are the reason why she was never canonized, or ever might be. 

 

Technorati tags: Richard Dawkins, Teresa, God, The God Delusion. atheism