Bruce Schneier

observed correction judgeent individuality freedom liberty

“For if we are observed in all matters, we are constantly under threat of correction, judgment, criticism, even plagiarism of our own uniqueness. We become children, fettered under watchful eyes, constantly fearful that — either now or in the uncertain future — patterns we leave behind will be brought back to implicate us, by whatever authority has now become focused upon our once-private and innocent acts. We lose our individuality, because everything we do is observable and recordable."

— Bruce Schneier

free customer product

“If something is free, you’re not the customer; you’re the product.”

— Bruce Schneier

personal privacy conversation field constitution prevent

“One hundred years ago, everyone could have personal privacy. You and your friend could walk into an empty field, look around to see that no one else was nearby, and have a level of privacy that has forever been lost. As Whitfield Diffie has said: "No right of private conversation was enumerated in the Constitution. I don't suppose it occurred to anyone at the time that it could be prevented”

— Bruce Schneier

data pollution information age privacy environment challenge

“Data is the pollution problem of the information age, and protecting privacy is the environmental challenge.”

— Bruce Schneier

privacy human right dignity respectpresent world

“Privacy is an inherent human right, and a requirement for maintaining the human condition with dignity and respect. It is about choice, and having the power to control how you present yourself to the world.”

— Bruce Schneier

surveillance prey predators

“Surveillance makes us feel like prey, just as it makes the surveillors act like predators.”

— Bruce Schneier

Richelieu six lines hang Beria man crime data guilty

“In the 17th century, the French statesman Cardinal Richelieu famously said, “Show me six lines written by the most honest man in the world, and I will find enough therein to hang him.” Lavrentiy Beria, head of Joseph Stalin’s secret police in the old Soviet Union, declared, “Show me the man, and I’ll show you the crime.” Both were saying the same thing: if you have enough data about someone, you can find sufficient evidence to find him guilty of something.”

— Bruce Schneier

privacy human right dignity respect

“Privacy is an inherent human right, and a requirement for maintaining the human condition with dignity and respect.”

— Bruce Schneier

complexity enemy security

“Complexity is the worst enemy of security, and our systems are getting more complex all the time.”

— Bruce Schneier

NSA CIA kill people metadata

“In 2014, former NSA and CIA director Michael Hayden remarked, “We kill people based on metadata.” "

— Bruce Schneier

Google more think remember perfectly forever

“Google knows more about what I’m thinking of than I do, because Google remembers all of it perfectly and forever.”

— Bruce Schneier

technology solve security problem understand

"If you think technology can solve your security problems, then you don't understand the problems and you don't understand the technology."

— Bruce Schneier

internet user security nothing screwed

I am regularly asked what the average Internet user can do to ensure his security. My first answer is usually 'Nothing; you're screwed'.

— Bruce Schneier

amateurs hack systems professionals people

"Amateurs hack systems, professionals hack people."

— Bruce Schneier

people weakest link security failure

"People often represent the weakest link in the security chain and are chronically responsible for the failure of security systems."

— Bruce Schneier

people killed pigs sharks evaluate risk

"More people are killed every year by pigs than by sharks, which shows you how good we are at evaluating risk."

— Bruce Schneier

steal password new thumbprint failure different

"If someone steals your password, you can change it. But if someone steals your thumbprint, you can't get a new thumb. The failure modes are very different."

— Bruce Schneier

surveillance business model internet

"Surveillance is the business model of the Internet."

— Bruce Schneier

insufficient protect law mathematics

"It is insufficient to protect ourselves with laws; we need to protect ourselves with mathematics."

— Bruce Schneier

password oxymoron random string easy remember

"The whole notion of passwords is based on an oxymoron. The idea is to have a random string that is easy to remember. Unfortunately, if it's easy to remember, it's something nonrandom like 'Susan.' And if it's random, like 'r7U2*Qnp,' then it's not easy to remember."

— Bruce Schneier

civic hygiene technology polic state

"It is poor civic hygiene to install technologies that could someday facilitate a police state."

— Bruce Schneier

corporate government surveillance separate alliance

"Corporate and government surveillance aren't separate; they're an alliance of interests."

— Bruce Schneier

provider surveillance feudal lord

"Choosing providers is not a choice between surveillance/not; it's just choosing which feudal lord gets to spy on you."

— Bruce Schneier

surveillance power abuse status watched

"Surveillance of power is one of the most important ways to ensure that power does not abuse its status. But, of course, power does not like to be watched."

— Bruce Schneier

frustrating terrorism ineffectual magnify terrorize ourselves

"It's frustrating; terrorism is rare and largely ineffectual, yet we regularly magnify the effects of both their successes and failures by terrorizing ourselves."

— Bruce Schneier

four horsemen information apocalypse

"Beware the Four Horsemen of the Information Apocalypse: terrorists, drug dealers, kidnappers, and child pornographers. Seems like you can scare any public into allowing the government to do anything with those four."

— Bruce Schneier

terrorist take life government freedom

"Terrorists can only take my life. Only my government can take my freedom."

— Bruce Schneier

digital files uncopyable water unwet

"Digital files cannot be made uncopyable, any more than water can be made not wet."

— Bruce Schneier

liberty security privacy

"Liberty requires security without intrusion, security plus privacy"

— Bruce Schneier

trust damage NSA internet

"We no longer know whom to trust. This is the greatest damage the NSA has done to the Internet, and will be the hardest to fix."

— Bruce Schneier