Terrorism isn't a crime against people or property. It's a crime against our minds, using the death of innocents and destruction of property to make us fearful. Terrorists use the media to magnify their actions and further spread fear. And when we react out of fear, when we change our policy to make our country less open, the terrorists succeed -- even if their attacks fail. But when we refuse to be terrorized, when we're indomitable in the face of terror, the terrorists fail -- even if their attacks succeed.

~ Bruce Schneier

Bruce Schneier Courage Security Terrorism

Even though we don't know which companies the NSA has compromised – or by what means – knowing that they could have compromised any of them is enough to make us mistrustful of all of them. This is going to make it hard for large companies like Google and Microsoft to get back the trust they lost. Even if they succeed in limiting government surveillance. Even if they succeed in improving their own internal security. The best they'll be able to say is: We have secured ourselves from the NSA, except for the parts that we either don't know about or can't talk about.

~ Bruce Schneier

Bruce Schneier Cryptography Dystopia Edward Snowden Espionage Google Internet Privacy Internet Security Liberty Microsoft Nsa Privacy Surveillance Surveillance Society Technology

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 record

~ Bruce Schneier

Bruce Schneier Encroachment Freedom Individuality Liberty Observation Privacy Surveillance

Computer security can simply be protecting your equipment and files from disgruntled employees, spies, and anything that goes bump in the night, but there is much more. Computer security helps ensure that your computers, networks, and peripherals work as expected all the time, and that your data is safe in the event of hard disk crash or a power failure resulting from an electrical storm. Computer security also makes sure no damage is done to your data and that no one is able to read it unless you want them to

~ Bruce Schneier

Bruce Schneier Computer Security Cyber Security Cybersecurity Technology

If you ask amateurs to act as front-line security personnel, you shouldn't be surprised when you get amateur security.

~ Bruce Schneier

Bruce Schneier False Positives Paranoia Security See Something Say Something Social Control Surveillance

People don't understand computers. Computers are magical boxes that do things. People believe what computers tell them.

~ Bruce Schneier

Bruce Schneier Believe People Understand

Air travel survived decades of terrorism, including attacks which resulted in the deaths of everyone on the plane. It survived 9/11. It'll survive the next successful attack. The only real worry is that we'll scare ourselves into making air travel so onerous that we won't fly anymore.

~ Bruce Schneier

Bruce Schneier Successful Worry Fly

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

Bruce Schneier Problems Security Think

There are two types of encryption: one that will prevent your sister from reading your diary and one that will prevent your government.

~ Bruce Schneier

Bruce Schneier Sister Reading Two

When a big company lays you off, they often give you a year's salary to 'go pursue a dream.' If you're stupid, you panic and get another job. If you're smart, you take the money and use the time to figure out what you want to do next.

~ Bruce Schneier

Bruce Schneier Time Job Smart