January 2020 - nexa - server-nexa.polito.it

5G Security

by Giacomo Tesio

Una panoramica chiara e comprensibile che dovrebbe arrivare a chiunque abbia ruoli decisionali in merito all'adozione e alla distribuzione di sistemi basati sul protocollo 5G. La prospettiva è molto US-centrica, ma le considerazioni di Schneier sono molto più preoccupanti in Europa. https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2020/01/china_isnt_the_.html Giacomo _____ The 5G security problems are threefold. First, the standards are simply too complex to implement securely. This is true for all software, but the 5G protocols offer particular difficulties. Because of how it is designed, the system blurs the wireless portion of the network connecting phones with base stations and the core portion that routes data around the world. Additionally, much of the network is virtualized, meaning that it will rely on software running on dynamically configurable hardware. This design dramatically increases the points vulnerable to attack, as does the expected massive increase in both things connected to the network and the data flying about it. Second, there's so much backward compatibility built into the 5G network that older vulnerabilities remain. 5G is an evolution of the decade-old 4G network, and most networks will mix generations. Without the ability to do a clean break from 4G to 5G, it will simply be impossible to improve security in some areas. Attackers may be able to force 5G systems to use more vulnerable 4G protocols, for example, and 5G networks will inherit many existing problems. Third, the 5G standards committees missed many opportunities to improve security. Many of the new security features in 5G are optional, and network operators can choose not to implement them. The same happened with 4G; operators even ignored security features defined as mandatory in the standard because implementing them was expensive. But even worse, for 5G, development, performance, cost, and time to market were all prioritized over security, which was treated as an afterthought. Already problems are being discovered. In November 2019, researchers published vulnerabilities that allow 5G users to be tracked in real time, be sent fake emergency alerts, or be disconnected from the 5G network altogether. And this wasn't the first reporting to find issues in 5G protocols and implementations. [...] 5G security is just one of the many areas in which near-term corporate profits prevailed against broader social good. In a capitalist free market economy, the only solution is to regulate companies, and the United States has not shown any serious appetite for that. What's more, U.S. intelligence agencies like the NSA rely on inadvertent insecurities for their worldwide data collection efforts, and law enforcement agencies like the FBI have even tried to introduce new ones to make their own data collection efforts easier. Again, near-term self-interest has so far triumphed over society's long-term best interests. [...] The geopolitics of 5G are complicated, involving a lot more than security. China is subsidizing the purchase of its companies' networking equipment in countries around the world. The technology will quickly become critical national infrastructure, and security problems will become life-threatening. Both criminal attacks and government cyber-operations will become more common and more damaging. Eventually, Washington will have do so something. That something will be difficult and expensivelet's hope it won't also be too late.

Jan. 29, 2020

Facial Recognition Is Only the Beginning | Public Books

by J.C. DE MARTIN

https://www.publicbooks.org/facial-recognition-is-only-the-beginning/ (Sent from my wireless device; please excuse brevity and typos (if any))

Jan. 29, 2020

Summer School - Algoritmic State, Market and Society, Florence 13-17 July

by Giovanni De Gregorio

Carissimi, vorrei condividere con voi quest'iniziativa estiva che spero possa essere di vostro interesse: The First Edition of the Summer School on “Algorithmic State, Market and Society”(FLOS) will be held in Florence on 13-17 July 2020. The one-week programme focuses on cutting-edge issues in the field of law and technology focusing especially on automated technologies. This initiative aims to create a multi-stakeholder environment made of scholars, practitioners, students and experts in the field of law, technology and economics. The idea of FLOS has been conceived within the framework of the research group on “Algorithmic State, Market and Society” which has been launched during the inaugural conference on “Constitutional Challenges in the Algorithmic Society” held at the University of Florence and European University Institute in May 2019. FLOS aims to give rigorous and comprehensive training in a wide variety of topics on law and algorithms thanks to the collaboration of distinguished scholars and participants. It embraces law, technology and policy and it is open to policy makers, practitioners, judges, scholars and students. Each day is made of four sessions of one hour and half. Each session deals with different issues in the field of law and algorithms and aims to create the environment for questions and discussions between participants. FLOS is jointly hosted by the University of Florence (Italy), the European University Institute (Florence, Italy), and Bocconi University (Milan, Italy). FLOS is coordinated by professors Oreste Pollicino, Giovanni Sartor and Andrea Simoncini and scientifically organised by Erik Longo and Giovanni De Gregorio. For any query or information, please contact Erik Longo (erik.longo(a)unifi.it) and Giovanni De Gregorio (degregorio.giovanni(a)unibocconi.it) You can find more info at http://www.algorithmicstate.eu/summer-school/ Un saluto Giovanni De Gregorio

Jan. 28, 2020

Trump contro Apple: l'iPhone del pilota che ha ucciso tre persone va sbloccato. Qual è la posta in gioco

by don Luca Peyron

Come diceva l'indimenticabile Enzo Tortora... dive eravamo rimasti? Buona lettura Dl https://www.valigiablu.it/trump-fbi-apple-crittografia/amp/

Jan. 28, 2020

Pour lutter contre les GAFA, Framasoft veut aller plus loin dans la dècentralisation du Web

by don Luca Peyron

Après avoir promu de nombreux outils pour « sortir de Google », l’association française de défense du logiciel libre se concentre maintenant sur des plates-formes décentralisées. Bonne lecture dl https://www.lemonde.fr/pixels/article/2019/12/27/chez-framasoft-des-chatons… _________________________ www.universitari.to.it via XX settembre 83, Torino tel. 011 5156239

Jan. 28, 2020

Kurt Gödel and the mechanization of mathematics - Essay - Footnotes to Plato - TLS

by J.C. DE MARTIN

Kurt Gödel and the mechanization of mathematics Juliette Kennedy discusses Kurt Gödel’s Incompleteness Theorems: the ingenious proofs and enduring impact By Juliette Kennedy https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/kurt-godel-incompleteness-theorems/ (Sent from my wireless device; please excuse brevity and typos (if any))

Jan. 28, 2020

magma guide

by Alberto Cammozzo

Internet censorship techniques are constantly evolving. The magma guide's open collaborative structure allows users to distribute, modify, contribute, and review content - ensuring the guide stays as up-to-date as possible. <https://magma.lavafeld.org/> Introduction Conducting research on information controls can be complicated. The magma guide is here to help. This open-licensed, collaborative repository provides the first publicly available research framework for people working to measure information controls and online surveillance activities. In it, users can find the resources they need to perform their research more effectively and efficiently. The guide begins with a general overview of the basics of Internet censorship research ("Getting started"). It then walks users through a series of relevant methodologies, measurements, and analyses. After reviewing the guide, individuals will be able to create their own research plans and make better informed choices regarding the tools and procedures required to perform their work in an ethical and secure manner. The content of the guide represents industry best practices, developed in consultation with networking researchers, activists, and technologists. And it's evergreen, too--constantly updated with new content, resources, and tutorials. The host website is regularly updated and synced to a version control repository (Git) that can be used by members of the network measurements community to review, translate, and revise content of the guide. To get started, simply click on a topic in the left sidebar. Users who are conducting this type of research for the first time should begin with "Getting started" and move in sequential order through the topics. Users who already have a basic or better understanding of this type of work can use the search bar at the top right of this page to find more targeted information. [...]

Jan. 28, 2020

The battle for ethical AI at the world’s biggest machine-learning conference

by J.C. DE MARTIN

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00160-y (Sent from my wireless device; please excuse brevity and typos (if any))

Jan. 27, 2020

L'Antitrust apre un procedimento contro Facebook

by don Luca Peyron

News dai social Dl https://www-repubblica-it.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.repubblica.it/economia…

Jan. 27, 2020

South American nations open fire on ICANN for 'illegal and unjust' sale of .amazon to zillionaire Jeff Bezos

by Giacomo Tesio

Eight South American governments have vowed to make life difficult for DNS overseer ICANN after it gave the .amazon top-level domain to the US tech giant headed by Jeff Bezos. In a letter [PDF] sent on Friday, the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO) responded badly to a missive from ICANN’s president saying it was going ahead with adding the address to the global internet. Calling the decision “illegal and unjust,” as well as an “act of force,” it criticizes ICANN’s “attempts to legitimize a decision that was not taken under legitimate circumstances nor for legitimate reasons,” and vows vague revenge by “disseminating news of this situation to all relevant groups.” That angry response is one that ICANN has gone out of its way trying to avoid but, ironically, ended up inviting due to its attempts to drag out the process. It has been eight years since Amazon applied for its namesake generic top-level domain (gTLD) and, initially, the application passed all the checks and was approved, as were more than a thousand others. But following revelations from Edward Snowden about mass surveillance by the US government, which included tapping the mobile phone of the-then president of Brazil, the Brazilian government started raising objections and was joined by other South American legislatures. Those governments used an inter-governmental process to formally object to .amazon and ICANN responded by putting the application in legal limbo, presumably in the hope that Amazon would walk away. But they had reckoned without the online giant’s determination and, after spending years and millions of dollars going through ICANN’s review process, the tech giant emerged triumphant in 2017. Continua su https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/01/21/amazonb_icann_spat/ Giacomo

Jan. 27, 2020