• An Order of Seven Global Cyber-Guardians Now Hold Keys to the Internet
    65 replies, posted
[QUOTE]You may have heard the rumor that swirled briefly last month about an Internet “kill switch” that could power down the Web in the case of a critical cyber attack. Those rumors turned out to be largely overblown, but it turns out there are now seven individuals out there holding keys to the Internet. In the aftermath of a cataclysmic cyber attack, these members of a “chain of trust” will be responsible for rebooting the Web. The seven members of this holy order of cyber security hail from around the world and recently received their keys while locked deep in a U.S. bunker. But the team isn’t military in nature. The Internet safety program is overseen by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), a non-profit watchdog group that has access to a security system designed to protect users from cyber fraud and cyber attacks. Part of ICANN’s security scheme is the Domain Name System Security, a security protocol that ensures Web sites are registered and “signed” (this is the security measure built into the Web that ensures when you go to a URL you arrive at a real site and not an identical pirate site). Most major servers are a part of DNSSEC, as it's known, and during a major international attack, the system might sever connections between important servers to contain the damage. A minimum of five of the seven keyholders – one each from Britain, the U.S., Burkina Faso, Trinidad and Tobago, Canada, China, and the Czech Republic – would have to converge at a U.S. base with their keys to restart the system and connect eveything once again. We’re imagining a large medieval chamber filled with techno-religious imagery where these knights cyber must simultaneously turn hybrid thumb drive/skeleton keys in a massive router, filling the room with the blinking light of connectivity. In reality, it’s not so dramatic. The keys are actually smartcards that each contain parts of the DNSSEC root key, which could be thought of as the master key to the whole scheme. But it is interesting to know that there is a group of individuals out there that hold actual, physical keys that would reboot the Internet as we know it. [img]http://www.popsci.com/files/imagecache/article_image_large/articles/InternetKeys.jpg[/img] [I] The Keys to the Internet Each smart card contains a portions of the DNSSEC root key, which would be necessary to reboot the Internet as we know it if connections were severed to stem a cyber attack. [/I][/QUOTE] Source: [url]http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-07/order-seven-cyber-guardians-around-world-now-hold-keys-internet[/url]
Sounds like the plot for a Zelda game.
It's in the hands of ICANN officials? That's a little more reassuring then, ICANN's pretty damn trustworthy.
my lifes dream
the internet is serious
i hate the word cyber, it reminds me of fox news. Cant they find a better word?
I really don't get why all this is necessary but.. It still is kinda cool.
[QUOTE=Thomo;23673350]I wonder if in 300 years it will end up being a quest for some cyber indiana jones.[/QUOTE] Someone needs to make a game about that. In the aftermath of some giant war, the internet was shut down. You play as a basement dweller using your internet and gaming knowledge to navigate your way through the post apocalyptic real world and find the key to restart the internet. I would so pay for that.
sounds like a Deus Ex quest
Most out-of-the-ass country choice in history
The Elders of the Internet will not be pleased. [IT Crowd reference]
[QUOTE=Sparkwire;23673449]i hate the word cyber, it reminds me of fox news. Cant they find a better word?[/QUOTE] you are so right. And no they cant
"cataclysmic cyber attack" I think they're overdoing it a bit Its like they think Die Hard 4 is really gonna happen
[QUOTE=veribigbos1;23673774]"cataclysmic cyber attack" I think they're overdoing it a bit[/QUOTE] Seeing as how the internet forms the backbone for global communication and business, no I don't think they are.
:aaaaa:
"cataclysmic cyber attack" = Lets hide something from the people, as shutting down the internet drastically reduces the speed with which information spreads. :tinfoil: Could be though.
brb everyone. Going a getting the seven sacred keys of the mythical internet.
Until now, I had never heard of Burkina Faso.
I'm interested to know why they chose these people. I guess it's a balance between those from world powers and smaller countries.
-badreadingsnip-
[B]Now we wait for someone to make the one key to rule them all.[/B]
terrorists are gonna steal those keys
Seems interesting.
Seems logical. I mean, we know China is leading the charge towards cyber-electronic warfare, and in my personal opinion, China will become an enemy of the western powers. It would make sense that to cripple our economy, as would likely be the total of any conflict with China, they would strike the internet. At least not all the keys were given to Americans. Our government seems to think that we own the internet.
[QUOTE=Detective P;23674013] China will become an enemy of the western powers[/QUOTE] well your opinion sucks china's economy is completely reliant on the west
I wonder what "cyber attack" entails.
Lol. Fallout 4: New Internet! Explore Canada, U.S. Europe and more as you find the 7 holy keys of the internet and bring back the true power of World of Warcraft to the Post-Apocalyptic world!
$50 there'll be an attempt to steal/copy all/five of the keys and an attempt to hold the internet as a hostage.
I feel more paranoid now.
elder scrolls v
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