Sidebar: Security Log

Computerworld - Cybersecurity Views to Be Aired
Amid concerns that the White House has put insufficient stress on cybersecurity, current and former administration officials will address the two-day Physical-Cyber Security Summit at George Washington University in Washington, opening Dec. 7. Robert P. Liscouski, assistant secretary for infrastructure protection at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, will discuss how the Bush administration is differentiating cyber and physical security. Amit Yoran, who recently resigned as the DHS's top cybersecurity official, will also be a keynote speaker. His topic is "Who Will Lead in Critical Infrastructure Protection?" The conference comes in the wake of contentious debate over House intelligence bill H.R. 10, which included a provision to establish an assistant DHS secretary for cybersecurity. The administration opposed the provision, which enjoyed wide IT industry support.
Security Bookshelf
• Introduction to Computer Security, by Matt Bishop (Addison-Wesley Professional, 2004).
Don't be fooled by that "introduction." I found myself scratching my head several times. This book is thorough and quite technical, especially in the area of cryptography, where Bishop does a nice job of balancing the mathematical aspects with application. Anyone new to the computer security field will want to check out that section. And anyone studying for a CISSP certification will benefit as well, as Bishop covers some of the areas within the common bodies of knowledge, such as integrity models (Clark-Wilson, Bell La Padula). -- Mathias Thurman

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