Why I Do Cybersecurity … Because of One Book … Secrets & Lies

Why I Do Cybersecurity … Because of One Book … Secrets & Lies

In my career, there was a time before I read Secrets & Lies … and there was a time after I had read it. It completely changed my focus. In fact, no other author (apart from George Orwell) has had an effect on my thoughts on our future world:

Bruce showed me a vision of the most trusted world. He made public key encryption interesting, and I could immediately see how cryptography could be used to rebuild our flawed digital world. I now teach and research cryptography, and I adore the subject. In fact, I have an endless journey of learning in front of me — no other subject I have taught has ever given me that endless route of learning. So, I thank Bruce for taking me away from network switching and routers and in showing me the beauty of a subject where you learn something new every single day.

And, as I studied the subject, the whole world of trust and privacy came along, and there were a whole lot of new people who were dedicating their work to improving things for our citizens. Of Hellman, Diffie, Rivest, Shamir and Adleman, and each provided a key foundation element in building a more trusted digital world. It is only now — with cryptocurrencies and digital identity — can we properly see the world that they created. And, it is only now that we can build a better digital world.

A Brave New World or 1984?

Never in the history of humankind have we advanced so fast. In just four decades we have built a new era, and have said goodbye to our industrial age. But will our future be an amazing world of opportunity where every citizen has the same opportunity as any other, or will we end up in a 1984 Big Brother world? At the core of this is the debate around privacy and your right to own your own data. Bruce Schneier sees this as a core element in building our digitally focused societies:

“Privacy is an inherent human right, and a requirement for maintaining the human condition with dignity and respect. It is about choice, and having the power to control how you present yourself to the world.”

and:

“Google knows more about what I’m thinking of than I do, because Google remembers all of it perfectly and forever.”

and for our new digital world:

“One hundred years ago, everyone could have personal privacy. You and your friend could walk into an empty field, look around to see that no one else was nearby, and have a level of privacy that has forever been lost.”

We have been so lucky to have Bruce coming along each year to talk to our MSc students, and the next one is on 20 Feb 2023 (5pm). If you want to come along and listen, please register here:

Oh, and on the topic of our future, why not come along to our event on 2 March (5:30–7pm), and we’ll scare you a bit on how insecure our digital world actually is:

And, if you want to learn a bit of cryptography, try here:

https://asecuritysite.com

All are free to use, free to access, and free to learn about a whole new world of trust. And not an advert in sight!