We've heard this stuff before about how clueless PC users are turning the Internet into some sort of front end for international crime syndicates.....
Service providers and everyday users were singled out by panelists and audience members for not taking enough responsibility. Attendees slammed ISPs for not searching for rogue computers on their network or shutting off internet access to compromised PCs reported to them by security companies, charging that ISPs were endangering the internet to avoid support calls from cut off customers.
For their part, users don't care about security because the rogue zombie software often only uses minimal computing power, making the background spam-spouting code not their problem.
A few audience members argued seriously that computer users should have to take a test to get an internet license, maintain botnet insurance and have their machines inspected for information-super highway worthiness. Others countered that individuals shouldn't have to know how to secure their own computers -- the machines should simply be more inherently secure.
Personally I don't think it is going to happen. Users are not going to be licensed, ISPs could generally care less, until of course they get caught with a malware spewing botnet in their network. Even then at most they'll just block the users in question and get even more clueless users to replace them. As far as systems getting more inherently secure well how long have the major players been working on that one and is it better or worse than say five years ago. Oh well for the whole article that I pulled the above quote from head over to
Wired News and check out the rest.
