Steve Bellovin

I'm a computer science professor and affiliate law prof at Columbia University. Author of "Thinking Security". Dinosaur photographer. Not ashamed to say that I’m still masking, because long Covid terrifies me.
https://www.cs.columbia.edu/~smb

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npub1dk39y0fzlcstnc3y6w3l4g9fvc54us78adl9t6vala9hd206pfdqxl9d5z

NIP-05 Address

SteveBellovin_at_mastodon.lawprofs.org@mostr.pub

Profile Code

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relay.noswhere.com

relay.nostr.band

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npub1dk39y0fzlcstnc3y6w3l4g9fvc54us78adl9t6vala9hd206pfdqxl9d5z

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Last Notes

2024-09-03 04:25:38

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@npub1yxa…v7rr Get an iPhone, so you can buy things from an app-alling store instead.

2024-09-01 22:08:39

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@npub1kcl…eel8 Latest info is that they no longer suspect friendly fire.

2024-08-31 14:14:38

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@npub1kkw…hfrq Yah, but at least they supported labor unions and women’s rights. In today’s version, of course, their leader really does know nothing.

2024-08-27 14:33:46

The subhead here says it all—and if you don't understand why it’s an issue, read this thread: https://mastodon.social/@Infoseepage/113029990090225813
https://press.coop/@nytimes/113033413185030228

2024-08-25 18:19:43

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@npub178r…qekt Sigh.

2024-08-25 15:12:54

I spent some time yesterday listening to WCBS-AM, to get some last listening in before its demised. The programming was basically a retrospective look on the history of the station, going back to the 1930s. Sad to see it go—when I was living in North Carolina, I'd sometimes even listen to it at night. The range was almost 700 km, but it was a 50 kilowatt clear channel station, so it (often) worked.

2024-08-17 02:56:41

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@npub14cp…ufvg But do spirits come from the vasty deep when you call then?

2024-08-15 02:18:37

There's no cabinet post for a secretary of misinformation.
https://press.coop/@nytimes/112963576151439828

2024-08-14 20:15:35

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@npub178r…qekt I see that you edited the post to correct "palace" to "place". I was uncertain—this is, after all, Las Vegas we're talking about.

2024-08-14 19:53:56

You'll love this one, @npub1rkj…ufed https://techhub.social/@Techmeme/112962014640033767

2024-08-14 19:05:06

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@npub1wfx…8uy3 Do you have a link to the new statute?

2024-08-14 04:00:29

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@npub178r…qekt 1337 on the hacker scale.

2024-08-14 00:24:43

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@npub178r…qekt Ugh. Be well.

2024-08-13 02:54:00

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@npub154p…p030 Is there anything at IAD that isn't weird? Definitely one of my least-favorite airports.

2024-08-08 15:00:13

Interesting if accurate. Also note that Kursk may have major symbolic importance to Russia and especially the Russian army; see, e.g., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Kursk.
https://infosec.exchange/@littlealex/112925288375029203

2024-08-07 21:07:14

In some fashion, one of my email addresses has been acquired by TFG's campaign and his minions. My spam filter is handling these properly, but I'm unsure if I should attempt to unsubscribe or just let them waste a bit of effort. I suppose I could configure mailer rules to simply silently discard them, so they don't chew up any disk space.

2024-08-07 16:19:37

A "provocation”. Folks, we have a new operational definition of “chutzpah”.
https://press.coop/@washingtonpost/112921641800950884

2024-08-07 13:05:58

One would think that there is some sort of threshold below which it is uneconomic to send out a bill, even an electronic one.
https://files.mastodon.lawprofs.org/media_attachments/files/112/920/884/296/264/809/original/0cfc19dc73ae6462.png

2024-08-06 13:28:25

Waiting to see what lies Trump and Vance will invent against Walz.

2024-08-05 02:55:32

Let's be thankful that he tried to simulate a bicycle accident and didn't, say, put a syringe and a vial of some vaccine next to it…
https://press.coop/@nytimes/112906279488009657

2024-08-02 18:09:29

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@npub1wml…37pd Ooh—will read as soon as my all-day Zoom meeting is over…

2024-08-02 15:25:17

Are you a techie who cares about law and policy? Apply for a Congressional Innovation Fellowship: https://www.techcongress.io/congressional-innovation-fellowship (two former students of mine have done it!)

2024-08-02 15:21:48

Supreme Court in _Shelby County_: We're narrowing the scope of the Voting Rights Act.
5th Circuit: Hold my gavel.
https://press.coop/@nytimes/112892974151712108

2024-08-01 19:44:06

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@npub178r…qekt And your camera and radio gear wouldn't be the least bit suspicious.

2024-08-01 17:50:57

Called it (https://mastodon.lawprofs.org/@SteveBellovin/112887545093915438).
https://journa.host/@w7voa/112888018334251493

2024-08-01 15:47:18

Prediction: the MAGAts will complain that Biden gave up too much in this swap, and that their messiah would have gotten a better deal.

2024-07-31 15:17:18

Interesting essay on the history of Bell Labs: https://www.construction-physics.com/p/what-would-it-take-to-recreate-bell

2024-07-28 15:44:30

I've figured out what's wrong with today's GOP: they've contracted a bad case of mal-de-Mar-a-Lago.

2024-07-22 14:55:19

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@npub1psd…9sr7 Color me astonished—where were they able to source working 386 chips, to say nothing of peripherals?

2024-07-22 12:42:10

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@npub1psd…9sr7 I'm skeptical—you can't buy hardware these days that Windows 3.1 can run on, and stuff that old is often non-functional.

2024-07-21 21:48:14

For those of you who don't think that a candidate can be replaced on the ticket at this point, I invite you to read up on Thomas Eagleton (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Eagleton). He withdrew as VP candidate on August 1. And no, this was not in the 19th century. (Whether he should have been forced to withdraw is a separate question, of course.)
https://federate.social/@mattblaze/112826231854325136

2024-07-21 18:26:56

Just realized that the Democratic National Convention is in Chicago, just as in 1968. Fortunately, Richard Daley is safely dead and no longer mayor…. (Those of a certain age know what I mean. For the rest, the phrase “police riot” sums up what happened.)

2024-07-21 18:19:19

But I’m at Tanglewood now and the concert starts in 10 minutes, so I’m going to put away my phone…

2024-07-21 18:18:07

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@npub1fcj…esja Same here, but I only needed shallow reflection. As the saying goes, if nominated I will not run; if elected, I will not serve.

2024-07-21 18:16:26

I’m old enough to remember LBJ’s surprise withdrawal in 1968, but that was in March—and we know how that worked out.

2024-07-20 23:04:00

It was great hearing @npub1aq2…4nfw today in Stockbridge. https://journa.host/@w7voa/112818853161604946

2024-07-20 12:43:57

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@npub1j0c…cxw5 Comes from hanging out too much with lawyers…

2024-07-19 20:27:27

This is why, in 2012, I called for a “Major Cyberincident Investigations Board" rather than a strict NTSB analog (https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/6375729).
https://cyberplace.social/@GossiTheDog/112814417291035085

2024-07-19 02:37:07

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@npub1wfx…8uy3 I think that DuckDuckGo uses Bing as its underlying search engine, so you have one problem, not two.

2024-07-18 17:08:51

How to destroy trust in your service in one easy lesson.
https://mastodon.social/@zackwhittaker/112808156856057729

2024-07-17 22:14:41

I wonder if this will be the excuse he will cite to withdraw.
https://journa.host/@w7voa/112804119154272442

2024-07-17 19:42:15

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@npub1yxa…v7rr You're just lucky you're not in Toronto now: https://press.coop/@nytimes/112800073100589119

2024-07-17 18:51:38

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@npub1j47…zx6k I do not pretend to know the right answer.

2024-07-17 17:54:22

There are 2.5 reasons to call for Biden to withdraw:
1) Ethical: he's not actually capable of doing the job, or likely won't be through 2028.
2) Tactical: Trump will weaponize his perceived incapacity and use it, honestly or not, to defeat him.
2a) Trying to switch candidates now will generate a messy enough situation and process at this point that it will contribute to a Trump win. Prominent Democrats calling on him to withdraw because of #1 will contribute to this.

2024-07-17 02:56:31

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@npub1wfx…8uy3 Ugh. (Takes notes, since I'll soon be on Medicare, too.)

2024-07-16 17:45:13

https://www.newyorker.com/cartoons/daily-cartoon/tuesday-july-16th-j-d-vance
I can't add anything

2024-07-16 00:30:48

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@npub1av2…nty4 That by itself may not work, since iPhones, at least, wipe the phone after 10 failed PIN entries.

2024-07-15 21:05:56

For some reason, this passage from Shakepeare's Julius Caesar keeps running through my mind:
Kneel, Romans, kneel, and let's wash our hands, up to the elbows, in Caesar's blood and smear it on our swords. Then we'll go out, even to the marketplace, and, waving our bloody swords over our heads, let's cry, "Peace, freedom, and liberty!"

2024-07-10 18:49:45

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@npub1yfp…996n For that request, they probably have to allow enough time for internal laughter…

2024-07-10 15:59:58

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@npub10uk…tf7d I think that the issue is willingness to exert themselves even slightly, rather than finding someone with the right gear.

2024-07-10 15:47:05

“Admiral Grace Hopper’s landmark lecture is found, but the NSA won’t release it “: https://www.muckrock.com/news/archives/2024/jul/10/grace-hopper-lost-lecture-found-nsa/
(I heard her speak at Chapel Hill when I was in grad school. Sadly, she did not hand out nanoseconds at that talk.)

2024-07-10 13:52:21

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@npub1aq2…4nfw Of course, modern phones are supposed to have "liveness detectors”.

2024-07-10 13:05:35

A limit to biometric security?
https://journa.host/@w7voa/112761878995008719

2024-07-08 19:57:56

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@npub186s…54uq Papoon for president — he’s not insane!

2024-07-07 19:14:10

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@npub1wfx…8uy3 Only in principle. In practice, I never sleep that well.

2024-07-07 17:40:35

Given how poorly I often sleep, I've decided to rate my sleep quality in units of inverse Macbeths. Why?
'Methought I heard a voice cry “Sleep no more!
Macbeth does murder sleep”’

2024-07-06 12:49:20

For #Caturday: Minneapolis cat tours (gift link): https://wapo.st/3LboAev

2024-07-04 12:20:25

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@npub1grk…nqea Not by me.

2024-07-03 22:13:24

Given that during the American revolution, colonists who aligned with the Crown were called Tories, that sounds about right for the 4th…
https://journa.host/@w7voa/112724375660859559

2024-07-03 17:30:46

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@npub1cnz…fezh That's subsection C of section V of the paper, which uses anonymous credentials.

2024-07-03 17:04:53

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@npub1uty…sq7q See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literal_translation#Translator's_humor

2024-07-03 00:02:41

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@npub1mav…csjc They'll argue that the judge applied the wrong standard…

2024-07-02 22:34:59

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@npub1w52…rqkr Per the Court, those are core duties and unconditionally protected. But they said that other things might be official, and that the trial judge would have to figure it out for each act, fact, etc.

2024-07-02 01:47:56

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@npub14c2…umaq A loud lawless mob.

2024-07-02 01:10:39

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@npub178r…qekt He will in the future, per https://www.threads.net/@gtconway3dg/post/C84qbZvJPbU

2024-07-02 00:38:36

Called it: https://apnews.com/article/3d97d2e9497a5a208c1309aec7a0cd6a
https://mastodon.lawprofs.org/@SteveBellovin/112712893733058732

2024-07-01 19:46:42

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@npub1074…z2j6 No, because the trial hasn't happened yet.

2024-07-01 19:31:10

I'm waiting for Trump to tell the Appellate Division of the NY Supreme Court that falsifying business records is an official act. After all, his Justice Department claimed that his defamation of Jean Carroll was an official act…

2024-07-01 19:28:54

So per p. 5 of the slip opinion, there are a few instances where Trump’s lawyers conceded that the acts in question were unofficial. (The transcript is at https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcripts/2023/23-939_f2qg.pdf if you want to check the citations.) I wonder if Smith could seek two superseding indictments, one listing just those acts and one listing the others as necessarily trimmed by other parts of the Court's opinion.

2024-07-01 18:45:42

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@npub178r…qekt I'd phrase it a bit differently: "As if the substance were not bad enough, the timing is awful and apparently calculated.”

2024-07-01 15:12:51

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@npub13lv…5cs9 Also: cans being kicked down the road.

2024-06-30 02:54:49

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@npub178r…qekt All instructions, including this one, are lies intended to trick you.

2024-06-30 01:42:37

Call for Papers: 2025 ACM Conference on CS and Law: https://computersciencelaw.org/2025/cfp/
(Boost for reach!)

2024-06-29 00:24:20

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@npub17kw…xql9 All sorts of questions that I'm not qualified even to think about…

2024-06-28 23:28:27

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@npub12vu…k28m I think that misogyny is one of the reasons Clinton lost.

2024-06-28 23:10:23

The problem with Biden dropping out is that the Democrats have very few people who are nationally known by more than the folks who live and breathe politics, if not as a living or even a hobby than out of a sense of civic responsibility. Whitmer? She had her 15 minutes of fame with the kidnapping plot. Klobuchar? Hers was 5 years ago. Harris is the structural choice, picked 5 years ago as Biden’s backup, but she’d attract the racists, the misogynistists, the birthers, and other wing nuts. Who?

2024-06-28 16:05:16

This is Columbia Law School, so shouldn’t it be vacatur instead of vacate?
https://files.mastodon.lawprofs.org/media_attachments/files/112/695/096/859/564/636/original/487cccbb29073572.jpeg

2024-06-28 15:43:33

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@npub1rky…0xq2 Thanks; that did it!

2024-06-27 21:40:14

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@npub1kkw…hfrq I prefer the Hebrew Bible according to the Masoretic text, which at least includes the vowel markings on the Hebrew letters.

2024-06-27 01:28:57

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@npub1eak…hatz Bob Frankston is one of the people from whom I learned programming, lo these many years ago…

2024-06-26 14:44:25

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@npub1074…z2j6 You’re expecting fidelity to the law from the Fifth Circuit? Or from Thomas and Alito?

2024-06-26 14:23:12

Given how a number of recent important Supreme Court decisions have turned on standing, I owe a note of thanks to @npub13lv…5cs9 for helping me finally understand it. In fact, I’m now working on a law review article where it’s an important concept …

2024-06-25 02:25:43

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@npub1md8…lhh6 Not Topiary?

2024-06-24 20:18:34

Two new law review—legal history, really—articles in the Ohio State Technology Law Journal:
“The antiquity of algorithmic patents”, https://kb.osu.edu/handle/1811/104612
"Who coined the phrase ‘data shadow?”, https://kb.osu.edu/handle/1811/104614

2024-06-21 16:54:18

Question of the day: when baking bread, why does one proof yeast instead of proving it?

2024-06-20 19:09:15

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@npub178r…qekt I’m sure there’s some AI system that can automatically generate alt-text. (*ducks!*)

2024-06-20 16:05:04

My guess is that someone inadvertently specified an incorrect, overly restrictive ruleset. I've done that…
https://mastodon.social/@arstechnica/112649751990203911

2024-06-19 21:46:35

Uh, @npub178r…qekt — is https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/2024/06/18/las-vegas-monolith-utah/ part of your prep for DEF CON?

2024-06-18 15:11:28

New report: “Challenging the Machine: Contestability in Government AI Systems”, by Susan Landau, James X. Dempsey, Ece Kamar, Steven M. Bellovin, and Robert Pool: https://arxiv.org/abs/2406.10430

2024-06-15 02:38:24

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@npub1gag…cu2j Yes.

2024-06-15 02:01:12

I don't want to give up riding NYC subways, but this may force me to: https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/gov-hochul-suggests-public-transit-mask-ban-amid-covid-uptick-air-quality-alert/5507475/

2024-06-14 20:49:05

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@npub14e3…sy0l Ugh. Double ugh, for you and Adam.

2024-06-13 15:42:38

Read this—it's a really devastating critique of the security culture at Microsoft.
https://burn.capital/@ProPublica_rss/112609198292870169

2024-06-12 21:08:24

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@npub1l66…mu79 Hmm: https://www.cs.columbia.edu/~smb/papers/dissertation_abstracts.html#bellovin:verifiably

2024-06-11 14:58:44

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@npub13lv…5cs9 Utterly insane.

2024-06-07 01:51:39

Yay! Next, do BGPSEC.
https://mastodon.social/@arstechnica/112571856931886974

2024-06-05 15:24:05

The full report is available for free at https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/27756/long-term-health-effects-of-covid-19-disability-and-function
https://press.coop/@nytimes/112564670405561367

2024-06-05 12:43:04

DRM, but for email sent to Recall-enabled systems.

2024-06-04 20:39:36

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@npub1074…z2j6 Right. I’m noting that the profession considers whistleblowing to be an ethical *obligation*. That doesn't mean there are enough legal protections; rather, that there should be.

2024-06-04 16:42:53

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@npub1psd…9sr7 As long as there is no back-propagation of the toxin…