@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

SteveBellovin

@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org

I'm a computer science professor and affiliate law prof at Columbia University. Author of "Thinking Security". Dinosaur photographer. Not ashamed to say that I’m still masking, because long Covid terrifies me.
https://www.cs.columbia.edu/~smb

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

SteveBellovin, to random
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

Is it true that Republicans don't like "Return of the Jedi" because "Ewok" is an anagram of "woke"?

SteveBellovin, to random
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

Well, the Brother support web pages kept me from going out and buying a new printer/scanner—their fix worked. They lost out on an immediate sale, but that (plus, of course, the fact that they don't play weird, privacy-invasive games with toner cartridges) has helped confirm that this is the ONLY brand I'll buy.

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@skydog I use a laser printer, not an inkjet—I very rarely need to print in color, and I got tired of the yellow cartridge being empty when I hadn’t printed anything in color.

SteveBellovin, to random
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

I'm praying for clear skies Saturday night!
https://journa.host/@w7voa/112412311556827606

cigitalgem, to random
@cigitalgem@sigmoid.social avatar

Nothing to see here, just armed robots https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2024/05/robot-dogs-armed-with-ai-targeting-rifles-undergo-us-marines-special-ops-evaluation/

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@cigitalgem What could possibly go wrong?

IPmonger, to random
@IPmonger@hachyderm.io avatar

@SteveBellovin Passed a man near MSG that looked remarkably like you, but no mask. I convinced myself this couldn’t possibly be true and passed another man with a mask on that I decided absolutely couldn’t be you. Clearly I was in dire need of rest and nourishment.

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@IPmonger Since I'm in Massachusetts at the moment, it most certainly was not me. (I don't generally wear a mask outdoors, though.)

huitema, to random
@huitema@social.secret-wg.org avatar

Question for DNS experts. Do you know of a DNS resolver software that can be configured to use a different IPv6 privacy address for each outgoing DNS query?

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@huitema An interesting thought. It would presumably have to do duplicate auto-detect on any address it wanted to use, though.

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@mcr314 @huitema The original design of stateless autoconfig used the site's network (a /64) and the MAC address of the machine, expanded to 64 bits. That meant that the machine could be tracked across networks, etc., by the low-order 64 bits of the IPv6 address. The purpose of the privacy-preserving addresses was to retain the stateless autoconfig feature (and the consequent ease of administration for small sites), but prevent that sort of tracking.

mattblaze, to random
@mattblaze@federate.social avatar

Email from a student: "Can I use bullets in my project?"

Me: worriedly looking through the student's project proposal and wondering if I need to call the cops.

Turned they were asking if they could use bullet lists in a project document.

Context matters!

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@mattblaze Next time I see you, remind me to tell you a story about one of my offspring…

SteveBellovin, to random
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

The jokes just write themselves.
https://press.coop/@nytimes/112404894415400123

jpgoldberg, to random
@jpgoldberg@ioc.exchange avatar

From a list of qualifications for a job.

“You have worked as the single-threaded leader to drive initiatives across multiple product groups, …”

Fork that!

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@jpgoldberg Definitely not suited to modern hardware, either…

SteveBellovin, to random
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

I'm not even slightly surprised. I had rated the probability of disruptions during commencement at 100%. I confess that I don't know why Baker Field is more secure than the main campus, except that no one is going to want to take over a locker room instead of Hamilton Hall…
https://press.coop/@nytimes/112394353854634040

Cdespinosa, to random
@Cdespinosa@mastodon.social avatar

— “Our junior programmers don’t know how to escape and normalize metacharacters in database queries of our GIS”
— “I’ve got it: why don’t we just change all the street signs?”

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-york-north-yorkshire-68942321

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@Cdespinosa @acookiecrumbles I think that Little Bobby Tables’ mom lives on that street.

SteveBellovin, to random
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

I get the feeling they haven't updated their web site lately…

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@mattblaze How do I delete something that has never existed?

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@FerdiZ If their home page is that out of date, the contents will be, too, making the web site essentially useless. A one-time fix won't accomplish anything.

mattblaze, (edited ) to photography
@mattblaze@federate.social avatar

Shortwave "Discone" Antenna, Former AT&T High Seas Radio Site, Ocean Gate, NJ, 2009.

All the somewhat staticy pixels at https://www.flickr.com/photos/mattblaze/4141766569

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@mattblaze @karlauerbach Probably a lot easier on ships—far more space, including for antennas, lots of power, few weight restrictions, lower speeds mean easier aiming, etc. And ships don't have the advantage of altitude to increase line-of-sight range.

cmconseils, to random French
@cmconseils@mastodon.social avatar

me, rearranging my spice rack alphabetically Ok, what comes after thyme?

Cyndi Lauper: thyme

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@cmconseils @wendynather Jim Croce? "If I could save thyme in a bottle"…

stevenbodzin, to random
@stevenbodzin@thepit.social avatar

Good morning Blackhawk helicopter. Why do I only see military helicopters in NYC when there is a protest movement going strong?

EDIT: The answer is "confirmation bias"

Aircraft track of jolly 11, a Blackhawk helicopter that just flew from Eastern Long Island to New York City and circled some neighborhoods

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@stevenbodzin @adamshostack The helicopters hovering over or near Columbia (and annoying everyone in the neighborhood) were, per FlightRadar24, all from TV stations…

lauren, to random
@lauren@mastodon.laurenweinstein.org avatar

The mnemonic that was commonly used in electronics labs to remember resistor color codes many years ago was definitely NSFW.

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@lauren Also sexist as hell.

SteveBellovin, to random
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

The story about the officer whose “gun went off” gets better and better. From the NY Times (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/03/nyregion/nypd-columbia-shooting-hamilton.html): “The officer, who was not identified, was approaching a barricade on the first floor of Hamilton Hall when he fired his gun, which had a flashlight on it, the police said.” Apparently, the NYPD doesn't believe in stand-alone flashlights or miner's lights on their helmets, and of course safeties have to be off to use the flashlight function.
https://mastodon.lawprofs.org/@SteveBellovin/112374521412998273

SteveBellovin, to random
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

“NYPD Officer Fired Gun Inside Columbia’s Hamilton Hall, Manhattan DA’s Office Confirms”: https://www.thecity.nyc/2024/05/02/nypd-officer-fired-gun-columbia-hamilton-hall-raid/
Also note this: “Cohen said no students and only police officers were in the immediate vicinity when the shooting occurred.” In other words, the officer had their gun drawnfor no reason and used flash-bangs when that would not be normal for this sort of situation. It is lucky that no one was killed. (It's probably also why the NYPD wanted no journalists or legal observers present.)

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@druid Hey, it's only in the last ~2 years that press credentials were issued by the a mayor-controlled office and not the NYPD itself (https://www.nyc.gov/site/mome/press-card/press-card-faq.page). But the NYPD can still exclude people, per the first screenshot.
Of course, it could also have been the University, which threatened disciplinary action against any students who got near Hamilton Hall or the encampment (second screenshot).

Tuesday, 8:16 PM Alert: Shelter in place for safety due to heightened activity on Morningside campus. Non-compliance may result in discipline. Avoid area until further notice.

SteveBellovin, (edited ) to random
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

I gave a retirement/farewell talk today. Video at https://www.cs.columbia.edu/~smb/talks/farewell.mp4; slides at https://www.cs.columbia.edu/~smb/talks/farewell.pdf.

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@chris_bloke So there’s a story behind that cover (https://www.wilyhacker.com/1e/cover.jpg). Our editor had sent us several possible cover pictures, none of which we liked. As a joke, he sent us a newspaper clipping—but we didn’t know it was a joke and enthusiastically agreed to it. He said, “Oh,” and negotiated for the rights to it.

SteveBellovin,
@SteveBellovin@mastodon.lawprofs.org avatar

@BRicker Thanks! One thing I realized I forgot to mention in my talk: the importance of chance, but also how chance favors the prepared mind. The Miller paper falls into that category.

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