Secure Computing, located in the Twin Cities, has hired a number of our graduating computer science majors. Dave Diehl of Secure Computing will be visiting our department and giving a talk. This is a great opportunity for you to learn more about the field of computer security, as well as to make a connection with a potential job opportunity. The talk will be on Thursday, February 9, at 4:30 pm in CMC 209. Cookies will be served. Here is the talk title and abstract:
“Why security systems fail”
Although computer security is frequently thought of as a “hot” field with lots of new research, in fact it mostly consists of shuffling cards in a well-known deck (or deck chairs on the Titanic, for the pessimists in the field). Almost every computer security problem occurring in the wild today was either “solved” by researchers decades ago, or is a direct result of using systems which violate guidelines which were well understood decades ago. By discussing some of the historic solutions and why they have not been broadly applied, this talk will outline some of the differences between the security problem as seen by researchers, as pursued by the security industry, and as it actually exists in the wild.