We have two stories on iNews Cayman today, one illustrating the vulnerability of the Internet as it relates to your privacy and the other how to make it as secure as possible using encryption.

The latter article on encryption highlights the work executed by Phil Zimmerman who in 2013 said, “The natural flow of technology tends to move in the direction of making surveillance easier, and the ability of computers to track us doubles every eighteen months”.

Frightening, isn’t it?

And Zimmerman, who is the leading authority on encryption, was himself under a criminal investigation by the United States Customs Service for allegedly violating the Arms Export Control Act. You see, the United States Government had long regarded cryptographic software as a munition, and thus subject to arms trafficking export controls.

However, the government dropped its case without indictment in early 1996. Zimmerman mentions this in the published article.

Turning to our other article “You have no privacy (or security), so get over it” I expect most of us with computers and/or websites have been hacked.

Over a year ago here at iNews our website ieyenews.com was continually being hacked and we were more down than up. In desperation I added additional security so tight I couldn’t even get on to it. However, a local company was able (thankfully for me) to even get past that.

The basic truth about the Internet is spelt out in an article on the Reference For Business website under the title “Internet Security”. It says, “the Internet itself is not a secure environment. The Internet was originally conceived as an open, loosely linked computer network that would facilitate the free exchange of ideas and information. Data sent over the Internet—from personal e-mail messages to online shopping orders—travel through an ever-changing series of computers and network links. As a result, unscrupulous hackers and scam artists have ample opportunities to intercept and change the information. It would be virtually impossible to secure every computer connected to the Internet around the world, so there will likely always be weak links in the chain of data exchange.

The article continues:
“Due to the growth in Internet use, the number of computer security breaches experienced by businesses has increased rapidly in recent years. At one time, 80 percent of security breaches came from inside the company. But this situation has changed as businesses have connected to the Internet, making their computer networks more vulnerable to access from outside troublemakers or industry spies. To make matters worse, as Vince Emery noted in How to Grow Your Business on the Internet, 97 percent of companies that experience breaches in computer security do not know it. When business owners do become aware of problems, furthermore, Emery estimated that only 15 percent report the security breach to authorities.

Small business owners need to recognize the various threats involved in conducting “business over the Internet and establish security policies and procedures to minimize their risks. As a writer for Business Week noted, “With your business ever more dependent on safe use of the Internet, security savvy has become as important as understanding marketing and finance.” Internet security measures range from hardware and software protection against hackers and viruses, to training and information programs for employees and system administrators. It may be impossible—or at least impractical—for a small business to achieve 100 percent secure computer systems. But small business owners can find ways to balance the risks of conducting business over the Internet with the benefits of speedy information transfer between the company and its employees, customers, and suppliers.

To read the rest go to: http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/small/Inc-Mail/Internet-Security.html#ixzz3hO3yUMzj

So when government departments and businesses tell you they have secure lines, and every piece of information you give them is safe – they are lying.

It is impossible for the Internet to be safe and with all the new gadgets that rely on the Internet to make our lives easier and more interesting the more a third party will know about us. Worse still, as has been proved recently, third parties can even take control of your motor car!