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01/21/2006 Archived Entry: "Security, provided by the market"
Food for thought: Jeffrey Tucker looks at the decentralized and multifarious ways in which the free market provides computer security, and contrasts that with the rigid and uniform responses offered by a government agency.As important as computers have become, there are interesting implications here. On a day-by-day basis the security of these machines is a far bigger matter than the threat of terrorism. Whether we like it or not, and regardless of ideology, we all depend on market competition to bring us not only innovation but also to protect us in our dealings with information technology. It is not a perfect solution. It can be messy and fallible. But the market is the strongest and best hope for security, and the alternative [bureaucracy] is unthinkable.
He's right: I wouldn't trust the government with the security of my computer. They'd be slow, unresponsive, uncaring, and invasive. (Imagine getting your antivirus signatures updated once a year...or having to give them your admin passwords.) So why does almost everyone assume only the government can provide physical security? —brad