ColloquiaDistinguished Colloqium: Eugene Spafford - January 31, 2003

[Margery Ishmael]

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE

******DISTINGUISHED COLLOQUIUM******
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Friday, January 31st, 2003
Time: 4:30 p.m.
Place: Ryerson Hall 251

Speaker: EUGENE H. SPAFFORD, Purdue University

Title: Myths, Fads, and False Economies: How NOT to Get Secure Systems

Abstract:
It is clear from reading any newspaper or magazine that there is a real 
problem with the security of information systems. Viruses, break-ins, spam, 
identity theft, and concerns with cyberterrorism are all on the rise. Yet, 
with over 50 years of experience with building security tools and systems, 
why aren't things better than they are? The answer is that the field has 
been plagued by a number of mistaken beliefs, some bordering on the realm 
of superstition. If you believe that using strong cryptography provides 
good security, that open source is more secure than proprietary code, that 
the next release will be more secure than the current code, that full 
disclosure prevents break-ins, or that better firewalls are the answer, 
then you have fallen victim to the myths. In this talk, I will discuss some 
of the pervasive (and incorrect) beliefs that make building and operating 
secure systems such a difficult task.

Bio:
Eugene H. Spafford is a professor of Computer Sciences at Purdue 
University, a professor of Philosophy (courtesy appointment), and is 
Director of the Center for Education Research Information Assurance and 
Security. CERIAS is a campus-wide multi-disciplinary Center, with a 
broadly-focused mission to explore issues related to protecting information 
and information resources. Spaf has written extensively about information 
security, software engineering, and professional ethics. He has published 
over 100 articles and reports on his research, has written or contributed 
to over a dozen books, and he serves on the editorial boards of most major 
infosec-related journals.

Dr. Spafford is a Fellow of the ACM, Fellow of the AAAS, Fellow of the 
IEEE, and is a charter recipient of the Computer Society's Golden Core 
award. In 2000, he was named as a CISSP, honoris causa. He was the year 
2000 recipient of the NIST/NCSC National Computer Systems Security Award, 
generally regarded as the field's most significant honor in information 
security research. In 2001, he was named as one of the recipients of the 
"Charles B. Murphy" awards and named as a Fellow of the Purdue Teaching 
Academy, the University's two highest awards for outstanding undergraduate 
teaching. In 2001, he was elected to the ISSA Hall of Fame, and he was 
awarded the William Hugh Murray medal of the NCISSE for his contributions 
to research and education in infosec.

Among his many activities, Spaf is co-chair of the ACM's U.S. Public Policy 
Committee and of its Advisory Committee on Computer Security and Privacy, 
is a member of the Board of Directors of the Computing Research 
Association, and is a member of the US Air Force Scientific Advisory Board. 
More information may be found at <http://www.cerias.purdue.edu/homes/spaf>. 
In his spare time, Spaf wonders why he has no spare time.

*Refreshments will be served before the talk at 4:00 pm in Ryerson 255*

Host: Leo Irakliotis

People who may need assistance should call 834-8977 in advance.