The dotCrime Manifesto

Book excerpt: Internet crime keeps getting worse...but it doesn’t have to be that way. In this book, Internet security pioneer Phillip Hallam-Baker shows how we can make the Internet far friendlier for honest people—and far less friendly to criminals. The dotCrime Manifesto begins with a revealing new look at the challenge of Internet crime—and a surprising look at today’s Internet criminals. You’ll discover why the Internet’s lack of accountability makes it so vulnerable, and how this can be fixed —technically, politically, and culturally. Hallam-Baker introduces tactical, short-term measures for countering phishing, botnets, spam, and other forms of Internet crime. Even more important, he presents a comprehensive plan for implementing accountability-driven security infrastructure: a plan that draws on tools that are already available, and rapidly emerging standards and products. The result: a safer Internet that doesn’t sacrifice what people value most: power, ubiquity, simplicity, flexibility, or privacy. Tactics and strategy: protecting Internet infrastructure from top to bottom Building more secure transport, messaging, identities, networks, platforms, and more Gaining safety without sacrificing the Internet’s unique power and value Making the Internet safer for honest people without sacrificing ubiquity, simplicity, or privacy Spam: draining the swamp, once and for all Why spam contributes to virtually every form of Internet crime—and what we can do about it Design for deployment: how to really make it happen Defining security objectives, architecture, strategy, and design—and evangelizing them