Rick

Teaching with Design Principles

Design principles help students learn the essentials of technical design tasks. Students apply simple-sounding rules to…
Grade School Crypto Videos

This is a short, gentle two-part introduction to basic cryptographic concepts using text-based crypto examples. The…
Why Signalgate Matters

I found this in my files. I no doubt intended to publish it months ago and…
Another Telephone Phish

A person called me on the phone a few moments ago claiming to be from US…
Making Fun of Quantum Codebreaking

Quantum codebreaking uses a theoretically “large” quantum computer to break secret codes. Today, quantum computers handle…
War Plan Chat Includes Journalist

Journalists aren’t usually invited to online chats about US war plans. This seemed obvious until yesterday,…
Clever PayPal-based Attack

Do not call that number! This attack is brilliant. It uses a legitimate PayPal email message…
ARPANET Maps

Here is a set of geographical maps of the ARPANET in the 1970s and 1980s. There…
Breaking Bitlocker

It was only a matter of time before someone did this. Bitlocker is Microsoft’s technique for…
Play the Password Game!

A clever person has hosted a Password Game. Give it a try!
Leaking Secrets Under Social Pressure

Here is a classic example of human nature: people on a gaming site argue that the…
GPT and Confirmation Bias

“Garbage in, garbage out.” In computing we’ve recited the GIGO motto since I was in diapers…
SCI//HCS-P/SI/TK at Mar-a-Lago

This is a brief explanation of the weird acronyms on the cover sheets that appeared in…
The Mar-a-Lago Mess

Update: Former President Trump has been indicted under federal laws for unlawfully retaining government documents and…
The Quantum Computer Bogeyman

Peter Gutmann of the University of Aukland recently published a parable “On the Heffalump Threat.” He…
Can I auto-post to Mastodon?

Update: My autoposting mechanism never really worked. Fortunately, WordPress.com developed an autopost mechanism that I can…
Mastodon

Like lots of other people, I’m looking at Mastodon as a newer, better tech-social community. I’m…
Writing Nonfiction with ADHD

[Revised 17 Dec 22] This post is inspired by Tessa Flattum’s post, “How to Write a…
Telepathic Declassification

Former President Trump recently suggested that the sitting President simply needs to “think” something is declassified…
Email Attack via a Recycled Domain

A software engineering friend fell victim to an almost-successful attack on his Facebook account. The attacker…
Cybersecurity for MSSE 2023

MSSE second-year students may request a cybersecurity elective as course SENG 5271. If the course is…
Update: Tweeting Top Secret

Back in the dark ages of the Trump presidency, the President tweeted this photograph. An earlier…
Online Course: Cloud Top Ten Risks

I am pleased to report that the fourth course for the University of Minnesota in my…
Cybersecurity for MSSE 2022

I am offering an online cybersecurity elective to MSSE second-year students for 2022: SENG 5271. It…