That’s the fairly geeky title for the real point here. “Why do I have to keep changing my password? It’s so annoying!”
In the past, I have been perceived as a security fanatic. One reason I have been perceived that way is because I have often come into situations where there was blatant and obvious disregard for the very simplest measures of security, as if those things to keep people safe and data safe were bad business practices rather than healthy ones, and it was my job to fix that. I would probably think I was a security fanatic too! Let me explain a little more.
People normally value simplicity and time over security. That is a tough nut to crack and a tougher nut to solve. My own experience does show that being more secure usually takes a little bit more thought and a little bit more time. Better security is almost always perceived as more complex. So… then… isn’t it obvious? That explains why people don’t like to do what it takes to be more secure.
Hmmm… Yes, that does explain parts of it. It is also very similar to many other parts of our lives. Here are some examples.
- Having a healthy diet and getting regular exercise are obvious choices towards living a healthy lifestyle.
- Saving money for future needs, rather than borrowing more for current wants is an obvious choice towards having a much less stressful financial future.
- Making good coffee at home, before heading to work is a simple way to save money and time. (I’m near Seattle, WA. This one is clearly evident here!)
Security is perceived as difficult and time consuming. So, people often do not do it, or do not give it a decent effort. Each of the bullets mentioned above are things that most everyone knows will help them and will lead to a more enjoyable and more comfortable life. Security is the same way. There really is not a huge difference there.
We reap the consequences of our actions.
This has mostly been observations about why. As for a how to or more info about security, try reading this article and the related links at the bottom of that article. As for how to or more info about other simple life choices, try this site.
Filed under: Geek, Inspire, Perspective, TechProfound, Writing
What is your opinion of Spaf’s April 2006 entry “Security Myths and Passwords” (http://www.cerias.purdue.edu/weblogs/spaf/general/post-30/)?
Thanks for the question and link Sarah. In the next day or so, I think I’ll make a separate post about my opinions on this one. BTW, you’ve got a bit of info out there. I quickly checked out your blog and a few of it’s links. Interesting.
Thanks, Toby! I’m glad my blog was interesting to look over. There’s so much fascinating stuff to follow in the world right now; I probably need to cull my reading like you did recently, since really there’s too much for me to follow if it’s not related to my work, family, or friends. The trouble is, a lot of stuff (like security) IS related to my work, if only tangentially. I’m not quite ruthless enough yet, I guess.