Episode 21: Travel Security, Alexa Goes to College, and Decency on the Internet

We report a bit on one aspect of ChannelCon. Both Black Hat and DefCon were in Vegas during ChannelCon. So the question is: Are we any LESS secure with these folks in town? Of course this leads into a discussion of what the three of us do to keep our “devices” secure while we travel.

Somewhat related links:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/columnist/2019/08/12/how-safe-is-your-wifi-connection/1984961001/

https://www.theverge.com/2019/8/11/20800979/check-point-canon-eos-80d-dslr-malware-ransomware-cybersecurity

All of this discussion can be used to help educate your clients. We recommend that you schedule regular security trainings as a way to engage clients on the “business” level.

Topic 2: University buys Amazon Dots for every student dorm room. Interestingly, this program is not sponsored by Amazon.

The specific device is Alexa for Business & Voice. Once again, this is the march of the advancement of voice at the user interface.

Link:
https://www.cnet.com/features/alexa-time-for-class-how-one-university-put-an-echo-dot-in-every-dorm-room/

Interesting take-away: No one who puts a program like this in place is going to do it themselves. You may or may not make money on devices, but the consulting opportunity is huge.

Topic 3: Decency – Kind of.

Internet companies in the U.S. are not held liable for things posted on their medium if those postings are not controlled by the hosting service. For example: You can’t sue Yelp for ratings or comments made by users on Yelp.

Background:
Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act is blamed for everything from social-media bias to enabling revenge porn. Angela Chen explains the law that created the modern internet. Is it time to update this law?

The law itself: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/47/230

Not really Topic 4: A funny story about Alexa. Try this with your friends.

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