Family matters

Imagine the scenario: I am just sitting down to dinner and the phone rings – great timing! The caller ID reveals that it is my sister. She has a question: my niece and nephew are going to be using PCs for school and homework. How does she secure the home network and PCs? How does she, as a concerned parent, filter the Internet content she feels is inappropriate for her children? Initially, it seems this is going to be a short call, but as the conversation unfolds, the uncertainties and concerns mount up and any hopes of being able to eat my dinner before it gets cold are dashed.

While searching the Internet for anti-virus and parental filter products, my sister had been confronted with a plethora of results. Knowing just how careful she has to be before clicking on a random link, she decided it was best to ring her brother. What do people without any tech-savvy relatives do, I wonder? Whom do they ring?

Recently, another family member was presented with a very professional-looking web page and a pop-up message alerting him to the presence of malware on his machine. For only a small payment, suggested the pop-up, he could download an application that would both remove the threat and protect the machine in the future. Needless to say, I spent some hours the following weekend removing the application, which exists somewhere on the border between legitimate and illegal software.

The Internet is a wonderful resource. However, it also presents the criminal fraternity with the means to exploit others in ways the old-time crooks could only dream of. While this is not new or even news, to the non-technical user, it presents a real dilemma. It is no longer safe to surf the web, click on links and see where the journey takes you. With cybercrime an ever-growing problem, one is faced with the question: where do I go for trusted, impartial advice?

There is no doubt that competition and choice greatly benefit the consumer. As an industry, we must continue to innovate, drive each other to new heights of functionality and protect all of our shared consumers. However, the wide choice of legitimate products and services, together with the criminal options available on the Internet creates doubt. A 2006 survey suggested that, in the UK, citizens fear online fraud and criminal activity more than physical crime (http://www.getsafeonline.org/nqcontent.cfm?a_id=1438); I doubt that this statistic is limited to the UK.

I am not an advocate of Internet censorship; the right to free speech should be defended with all the courage one can muster.

The Internet should be a place where all are free to explore, learn, be entertained and do business safely. When my niece and nephew go to the local library, I don’t expect them to be targeted by muggers, yet somehow we do not display nearly the same outrage when this happens on the Internet every day.

If your home was invaded and your possessions stolen, it would no doubt be a traumatic experience; yet every day our PCs are subjected to virtual invasions and theft. A recent survey in the UK discovered that owners would be willing to pay up to £5,000 for the recovery of the information on their PC should it be stolen.

As a group of security professionals, enterprises and governments, we must protect our citizens against the increasingly organized criminal element trying to take control of one of the world’s most important resources.

Each country has its own laws and standards of acceptable behaviour, yet this should not stop us from agreeing to a lowest common denominator. As interested parties in the IT security field, we need to coordinate our efforts for the sake of all our customers. When a customer connects to their Internet banking site without realizing their PC has been hijacked, the money stolen from their account may be their own (or in some cases the bank’s), but the real cost of the theft affects us all.

Some questions of fraud come to mind:

In order to counter the threats present in today’s Internet environment, we have to think differently. Maintaining civil liberties while protecting the majority will be difficult. I don’t think anyone would advocate the introduction of an Internet ‘police state’, but should there be a PC ‘driving licence’?

‘Our problems are man-made; therefore they may be solved by man. No problem of human destiny is beyond human beings.’ John F. Kennedy.

In legal terms, Internet crime is relatively new; laws across different countries are inconsistent and the global nature of the Internet allows for crimes to be perpetrated anonymously and remotely with little fear of prosecution.

If there is a will, then as a global community, we can fight this cancer that is affecting our ability to conduct business globally in a safe and secure environment.

Is it possible for software, hardware and service vendors of the world to put aside their differences and form a powerful alliance with government and law enforcement to wage war against the online criminal element?

Whilst the value of online business has been growing year on year, many consumers still fear fraud and crime online. Driving the criminal element from the Internet would allow this market to flourish even more to the benefit of all businesses, shareholders and consumers.

Is it time for a United Nations of the Internet? Rather than individual nations working in isolation, can an institution recognized for its mediation in worldwide affairs bring the force of its members into the online world?

If my home is invaded, I expect the police to investigate and bring the perpetrators to justice. No such recourse exists online. Our homes are constantly under attack from remote and anonymous sources and we potentially invite the perpetrators into our homes while surfing the Internet.

If we can instil a sense of responsibility into people to learn about the operation of their PCs in the same way as they learn to drive a car and recognize the hazards on the road, perhaps we can prevent online crime more effectively.

In the UK, government and private enterprise have joined forces to help educate and provide proactive Internet safety guidance to its citizens through the initiative. Millions of people have benefited from the campaign, either through its online presence, television advertising or workshops held across the country in shopping centres and educational establishments.

While initiatives like these are to be welcomed as a step towards bringing a trusted advisor back into the online lives of the citizenship, one cannot help but ask: is education enough? Is awareness ever going to re-establish trust or should we contemplate the cure and perhaps give up some of our freedom online?