Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 2, 1999)
Big Brother’s credit card scam Computer chip serial numbers leave Web users vulnerable CLIFF HICKS is a senior news-editorial and English major and the Daily Nebraskan opinion editor. Every time I blink, it seems the computer industry gets one step more ludicrous than I thought possi ble. This time Intel’s the possible bad guy in question. I’m sure just about everyone in the world is familiar with the Pentium name. It’s been force-fed into just about anyone with a televi sion or radio, anyone who picks up a newspaper or magazine. If you touch the media, you know who Intel is. Intel plans on attaching internal processor serial numbers to every Pentium III chip, which will start shipping sometime in the near future. This number is designed, according to Intel, to track users on the Internet. In theory, this is supposed to make things easier for computer users. See, Intel’s claiming its serial numbers improve Internet security. Online commerce is booming. It’s bizarre, butAmazon.com is still in the red, and its stock is skyrocketing. It’s been on the up, and it’s still on the up. Why? Name recognition. Amazon.com may not be doing as much business as its executives hope, but its name has seen ink in Time magazine, the Wall Street Journal and nearly every other major paper and magazine across the 1 nation. And its intake has slowly been increasing. At current esti mates, it’ll be back in the black in another year or two. The cost? Credit card security. In the high-tech world of this afternoon (we’re too close for it to be called the world of tomorrow any more), credit card fraud is the white collar crime of choice. Even though big companies like Amazon.com have increased the security of their servers, many com panies haven’t. So fraud is still on the rise, and it’s only going to get easier, because more and more credit card numbers are going to be passed through the Internet. And it’s easier than you think to just pluck those digits out of a data stream. So Intel’s just trying to cut down on that kind of thing, right? Trying to make sure credit card fraud can be tracked back to the proper culprit. Of course, it isn’t that hard to configure a false number, according to hackers. So who is going to be using these numbers? Fll give you two good guesses - the second word is mail, and the first word is junk. Welcome to Spamville! Let’s say, for the sake of argu ment, I decide to turn my serial num ber on so people can “learn more about me.” Intel claims over 30 companies are planning on taking advantage of this. I have no idea ifAmazon.com is one of them, but I use Amazon.com on a regular basis, so we’ll use them for an example. I buy a copy of Orwell’s “1984,” and my PSN is sent. That’s entered into a database. So I have a) bought something on-line, b) displayed an interest in books, c) displayed an interest in anti-censorship literature and d) given my e-mail address to the com pany I’ve done this through. Now, mind you, if Amazon.com were a less-than-sterling company, they could pass that information on to other people, who could use it for whatever nefarious reasons they choose to. E-mail address + Internet busi nesses + $$$ = Spamville! Anyone who’s ever been on America Online knows all about Spamville. There are people who actually dredge e-mail addresses from chat rooms for money. These people earn $0.03-$0.08 per e-mail address, and they harvest them by the thousands. Step into a chat room, and you’ll be hit by e-mail backlash for weeks. Now imagine for a minute it got even easier for them to do that, and not just for AOL users. I have designated e-mail address es to catch junk mail, and I let those e-mail addresses pile up the flak when I’m away. I usually just dump them out without reading anything. More people may have to start doing this in die near future. Secure? What’s that? Here’s a few choice words of enlightenment for you about the Internet: It’s not 100 percent safe. Your heart’s broken, I know. You were all excited about the Brave New World™ out there, but it ain’t gonna happen. It’s possible to harvest credit card numbers just like e-mail addresses by breaking encryption. Isn’t breaking encryption, well, difficult? Hard, sure. Impossible, no. And once one person does it, they inevitably pass it on to everyone else. As of this writing, there is no encryption that cannot be broken. Some may take longer than oth ers, some may even take weeks or months, with computers and people working overtime. But no code is unbreakable. Geez, Cliff, the computer world’s hill of villains, isn’t it? Yep, it sure is. Hackers trying to steal your credit card numbers, Intel trying to pass your life story to any one with a sawbuck, Microsoft trying to cram everything they make down your throat and the government try ing to make sure all encryptions have a key that will let them open it with out effort. The computer world is the latest untamed frontier. Much like the mid 1800s, where whoever had the guns made the rules, the computer world’s in its Wild West phase right now. What’s does it mean to me? It means it’s time you start keep ing an eye on the computer world. Buy your computers like you buy your cars: Do your homework. That shiny new iMac may sound nice on paper, but are you prepared to buy software through the Internet for the next five years? That cheapie no-name brand computer might sound like a great deal, but what skeletons are lurking under the hood, and how long will you be able to use it? Who do you trust? Intel? Microsoft? Apple? Anyone? Trust no one. (™ and © Chris Carter and “The X-Files ”) Every time I blink, a new villain springs up. Someone other than me has got to be Lock and load Top nine concealed weapons myths A.L. FORKNER is a junior news-editorial major and a Daily Nebraskan columnist. Don’t you hate it when you’re at your girlfriend’s office, and it’s taken over by terrorists? If you’re anything like me, you’re probably sitting in the bathroom without shoes or a gun. Irritating, isn’t it? C’mon, who hasn’t faced that very situation? Well, good news. Soon that prob lem will be a thing of the past. That’s right, boys and girls, the concealed weapons bill (LB476) is back in the Unicam. (Is it just me, or does Unicam sound like a Schwarzenegger film?) Although the bill seems to have more than enough support to pass, the usual naysayers are all riled up. Of course, when the anti-gun lobby gets aroused, the pro-gunners get all huffy. Soon there’s so much fur flying that some facts get lost in the shuffle. That’s where concerned and dedi cated journalists come in. You know, me. See, I’m somewhat of an expert on the matter. Joyce Hazelton (South Dakota’s secretary of state) has decreed that I, A.L. Forkner, am per mitted in the state of South Dakota to carry a concealed pistol. Oh yeah, after the long and ardu ous application process ($6 and “Yous ain’t kilt no one didja?”) I was issued a CCW, or Carry of Concealed Weapons permit. That’s why I’m going to debunk some of the myths and mythters con cerning concealed weapons. Anyway, to avoid lawsuits, here’s the Top Nine Myths about the con cealed weapons permit. 9. They’re too easy to get. OK, I won’t defend the South Dakota system. But the bill in front of the Unicam will require a $75 application fee, a background check courtesy of the state patrol and com pletion of a gun safety course. Why is this a better method? First of all, do the math. How many trips to the plasma bank is 75 bucks? That’s even better than a five-day waiting period. Even if you wanted to kill someone, you wouldn’t have the energy to pull the trigger. 8. Minor crime will increase. Do I really have to discuss the hooked-on-phonics-worked-for-me esque logic at work here? Fine, I will. Let’s say I want to rob a liquor store. Gee whiz, I’d really like to rob it, but it would be illegal for me to con ceal a gun when I go in the store. Or, hmm, if I’m going to rob that store, I better go apply for a weapons permit. If I don’t, how can I rob Ken’s Kegs? It won’t make a lick of differ ence if I’m allowed to carry a gun or not. If I’m gonna knock over a liquor store, I’m gonna do it, license be damned. 7. Crimes of passion will increase. Again, if I’m ever to the point of killing someone, rest assured I don’t need a gun to do it. (Please look for A.L.’s newest book, “47 Ways to Kill with a Dixie Cup.” Available at fine bookstores everywhere.) 6. Kids will have better access to handguns. No joke here, folks. Nothing scares me more than the thought of a kid with a gun. That’s where the gun safety course comes in. Part of the class, as mandated by LB476, entails child safety lessons. 5.0 Street will become High Noon at 1 a.m. Personally, I kinda wish it would. Talk about a boon to natural selec tion. At the very least, we’d see a drop in profits at Abercrombie and Fitch. And I think anyone in their right mind can admit that’s a good thing. But, will it really increase vio lence in the bar district? Doubtful. Again I lean towards all the rig-a-ma-role (ask your grand parents) you have to go through to get the permit. If violence does occur, all the documentation will make arrest and conviction Just a little tip from your ol’ Uncle A.L., keep your hands in plain sight. And try not to use the phrase “Die pig, die.” Just a suggestion. 2. Right-wing militias will flourish. Whatever. It’s those loonies that scared me into getting one in the first place. 1. It’s an oil slick on the down hill slide to the end of civilization. No, that would be Geri Halliwell (the person formerly known as Ginger Spice) working as a United Nations ambassador. For goodness’ sake, Mk Nebraska is one of only seven states \ that doesn’t have some kind of CCW. Florida adopted one a few years back. Florida! I’m not sure how many of you are familiar with the most corrupt state ever. I like to say everything’s in the 80s. The temperanires. the ages and the IQs. Guess what happened? Unbridled riots, skyrocketing crime, dogs and cats living in peace? Nope, the crime rate dropped. Just like it has almost every time a state 'has passed con ‘ cealed weapon legis lature. Well, that about does it. I think I’ve cleared up most of the misconcep tions about con cealed u weapons. Yippee kai-yay. AmyMarttn/DN
