Copyright 2009-11 1. Copyright 2009-11 2 Roger Clarke Xamax Consultancy and PSARN Security, Canberra Visiting Professor in Computer Science, ANU and in

Copyright2009-11

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Copyright2009-11

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Roger ClarkeXamax Consultancy and PSARN Security, Canberra

Visiting Professor in Computer Science, ANUand in Cyberspace Law & Policy, UNSW

ANU RSCS SeminarInformation and Human-Centred Computing Group

16 August 2011

http://www.rogerclarke.com/EC/CCC.html, CCC-ANU.ppt

The Cloudy Future of Consumer Computing

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Consumer Computing Functions

• Email• Web-Sites• Personal Blogs• Micro-Blogs (Twit)• Personal Galleries

• Personal Music and Video Libraries

• Doc Prep• File-Sharing• Personal

Databases(Acc, Family Trees)

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Consumer Computing

Email clients, usingsmtp/pop/imap

Personal Web-Sites

Dedicated Devices

Office on the Desktop

FTP-server and -client

Functions Applications 1975-2000

Email

Personal Galleries

Personal Music

Doc Prep

File-Sharing

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Consumer Computing Devices

• The Home PC

• Laptop

• Palmtop / Handheld

• Thin Client, Netbook

• Smartphone

• Tablet

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• The Home PC

• Laptop



• Smartphone

• Tablet

Combinations

Desktop, Laptop, Dumbphone

Desktop, Palmtop, Dumbphone

Desktop, Netbook, Dumbphone

Desktop, Netbook, Smartphone

Desktop, Tablet, Smartphone

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• The Home PC

• Laptop



• Smartphone

• Tablet

Screen-Size Tech Capability

Substantial Some Needed

Substantial Some Needed

Limited None Needed

Moderate Some Needed

Limited None Needed

Moderate None Allowed

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Consumer Computing

Email clients, usingsmtp/pop/imap

Personal Web-Sites

Dedicated Devices

Office on the Desktop

FTP-server and -client

Webmail, usinghttp / https

Flickr, Picasa

iTunes

Zoho, Google Docs

Dropbox

Functions Applications ==>> Services 1975-2000 2000-

Email

Personal Galleries

Personal Music

Doc Prep

File-Sharing

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The Research Question

How well are Consumer Computing Services satisfying consumers’ needs?

To the extent that there are problems, what should be done about them?

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Challenges Inherent in the Research Domain

• Diversity among:• Consumers• Technologies• Consumer uses of technologies

• Ongoing, rapid change / unstable phenomena

• Can 'consumer requirements' be operationalised?

• Can 'consumer disbenefits and risks' be evaluated?

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Consumers – Segmentation

• Education, Income, Wealth• Infrastructure Availability• Technical Capability

• Opportunity-Awareness• Leadership / Followership• Risk-Awareness, Risk-

Aversion

• Age / 'Generation'

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The Generations of Computing Consumers

Indicative Indicative Generation Birth-Years Age in 2010Silent / Seniors 1910-45 65-100Baby Boomers – Early 1945-55 55-65Baby Boomers – Late 1955-65 45-55Generation X 1965-80 30-45Generation Y 1980-95 15-30The iGeneration 1995- 0-15

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The Generations of Computing Consumers

Baby Boomers (45-65)Handshake/phone, PCs came late, had to adapt to mobile phonesWork is Life, the team discusses / the boss decides, process-oriented

GenXs (30-45)Grew up with PCs, email and mobile phones, hence multi-taskersWork to Have More Life, expect payback from work, product-oriented

GenYs (15-30)Grew up with IM/chat, texting and video-games, strong multi-taskersLife-Work Balance, expect fulfilment from work, highly interactive

iGens (to 15)Growing up with texting, multi-media social networking, networked games, multi-channel immersion / inherent multi-tasking?Life before Work, even more hedonistic, highly (e-)interactive

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Requirements, Disbenefits and RisksThe Organisational Perspective

1. Operational RequirementsDependability on a day-to-day basis

2. Contingent RisksLow likelihood, but highly significant

3. Security Risks

4. Commercial Disbenefits and Risks

5. Compliance Disbenefits and Risks

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Org 1. Operational Requirements• Fit – to users' needs, and customisability• Reliability – continuity of operation

• Availability hosts/server/db readiness/reachability

• Accessibility network readiness

• Usability response-time, and consistency

• Robustness frequency of un/planned unavailability (97% uptime = 5 hr per week offline)

• Resilience speed of resumption after outages

• Recoverability service readiness after resumption

• Integrity – sustained correctness of the service, and the data

• Maintainability – fit, reliability, integrity after bug-fixes & mods

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Org 2. Contingent Risks

• Major Service Interruptions• Service Survival – supplier collapse or withdrawal

Safeguards include software escrow; escrow inspection; proven recovery procedures; rights that are proof against actions by receivers

• Data Survival – data backup/mirroring/synch, accessibility

• Data Acessibility – blockage by opponents or a foreign power

• Compatibility – software, versions, protocols, data formats

• FlexibilityCustomisationForward-Compatibility to migrate to new levelsBackward-Compatibility to protect legacy systemsLateral Compatibility to enable dual-sourcing and escape

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Consumer Requirements and Risks – 1 of 3

The Basic Needs• Does it do what I want it to do? [Fit]• Will it be there when I want it? [Availability, Reliability]

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The Basic Needs• Does it do what I want it to do? [Fit]• Will it be there when I want it? [Availability, Reliability]

The Basic Protections• How do I keep going if it stays fallen over for a long time?

[Service Interruptions]• Will you respond helpfully and quickly enough when I ask for help?

[Customer Service]• Will you lose my data, or muck it up? [Data Integrity]• Do I get my data back if you fall over or withdraw the service? [Survival]• Can I move my data to another supplier? [Lateral Compatibility]• Who can I complain to if I get dudded, and will they actually help me?

[Consumer Protection]

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More Advanced Needs• Will it keep doing what it does now? [Service Integrity]• Will it stay up-to-date? [Future Fit]• Will it fall over too often? [Robustness]• Will it come back quickly after it falls over? [Resilience]• Is my service protected against you, them and the gods? [Service

Security]• If bits of it are broken, will you fix it without breaking it some

more? [Maintainability]• Can I fiddle with it a bit if I need to? [Flexibility]• Can I move my data to an upgraded version? [Forward

Compatibility]• How long will old versions keep working for me?

[Backward Compatibility]• Am I breaking the law if I use the service? [Legal Compliance]

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More Advanced Protections• Am I going to get gouged? [Cost]• Can only appropriate people get in and do things?

[Authentication and Authorisation]• Can I get access to all data that you hold about me?

[Subject Access]• Is my data protected against you, them and the gods?

[Data Security]• Is my privacy protected against you, them and the gods?

[Privacy Controls]• If I terminate our relationship, will my data be irretrievably

deleted? [Fully Effective Withdrawal]• What happens to my data if I die? [Archival /

Memorialisation]

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How well are Consumer Computing Services satisfying consumers’ needs?

• Ask Consumers• using Surveys• using Focus Groups• using Reps and Advocates

• Conduct Field Studies• of Consumer Behaviour• of Corporate Behaviour• of Corporate

Undertakings

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How are Consumer Requirements Satisfied?

& How are Consumer Risks Managed?

• Through the Provider:• Practices• Policies• Terms of Service

• Through the State:• Law• Regulatory Resources• Regulatory Enforcement

• Through Private Litigation

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How are Consumer Requirements Satisfied?

& How are Consumer Risks Managed?• Through the Provider:

• Practices• Policies• Terms of Service (ToS)

• Through the State:• Law• Regulatory Resources• Regulatory Enforcement

• Through Private Litigation

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Research Method

Preliminary Phase• ...

Empirical Phase• Validation of the Spec

for Consumer Requirements

• Sample Selection• In-Depth ToS Studies• Comparative ToS

StudiesArticulation Phase• ...

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Research Method

Preliminary Phase• Studies of the Domain• Specification of

Consumer Requirements• Accessibility of ToS• In-Depth Study of 1 ToS• Comparative Study of

ToS re 1 Cluster of Terms

• Consumer Protection Laws, Resources, Enforcement

Empirical Phase• Validation of the Spec

for Consumer Requirements

• Sample Selection• In-Depth ToS Studies• Comparative ToS

StudiesArticulation Phase• ...

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Research Method

Preliminary Phase• Studies of the Domain• Specification of

Consumer Requirements• Accessibility of ToS• In-Depth Study of 1 ToS• Comparative Study of



Empirical Phase• Validation of the Spec for

Consumer Requirements• Sample Selection• In-Depth ToS Studies• Comparative ToS StudiesArticulation Phase• Discussions with Providers• Expression of Model Terms• Interactions with

Consumer Advocacy Organisations, Regulators, Policy Makers

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1. Accessibility of the Terms of Service

• The Current Version of the ToS• In all cases, they are on the web-site• Generally, no date of applicability is provided

• Prior Versions of the ToS• In not one case are prior versions visible

• Changes to the ToS• All but one claim the right to unilaterally change the Terms:

• most do not require notice, but just an announcement somewhere on the website, and changes have immediate effect

• a few require that notice be provided, the change is to be explained, and the notice is to be provided in advance, and by user-convenient means

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Accessibility of the Terms of ServiceThe Significance for Consumers

• Consumers can only know what Terms apply to an earlier transaction if they mirrored the Terms at the time

• The Terms applicable to the next transaction may not be the same as they were for previous transactions

• The Terms applicable to transactions and to the consumer’s data are entirely under the provider's control

• Consumers can place no reliance on what they may have previously read or heard about the Terms

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2. In-Depth Study of Terms of Service

LinkedIn

A (‘social’) networking service for professionals

A Priori:• Its users should be well-informed and

demanding • So the provider is likely to:

• address its customers' needs• balance their interests against the

company's

• So it can be expected to provide a benchmark

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LinkedIn In-Depth• No responsibility to provide the service, to do so reliably,

or to sustain data stored in it• Subscribers must disclose physical location, even if

irrelevant• No internal complaints process• No rights to restitution, no liability for identity fraud• LinkedIn gains rights to customers' data that are almost

equivalent to the rights of the customers themselves• Unilateral changes to the Privacy Statement, without

notice• Storage in the USA under lax privacy laws• No undertakings to control the behaviour of staff• Enforced 'permission' to disclose personal data, without

legal authority, "to assist government enforcement agencies"

• Inadequate subject access and correction rights

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LinkedIn In-DepthThe Significance for Consumers

• LinkedIn projects itself as a networking service for well-informed and demanding professionals

• It was expected to provide a benchmark

• In fact, many aspects are badly handled• Not a benchmark, but rather a serious

concern

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QuickTime™ and aTIFF (LZW) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

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http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/08/12/linkedin_social_ads_trust/

.....



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Terms of Service3. Clusters

• Service-Level Warranties and Indemnities• Lateral Compatibility ('Can I get my data

out?')• Authentication and Authorisation• Second-Party Risk Exposure• Third-Party Risk Exposure• Data Deletion• Subject Access• Customer Service• Complaints-Handling – Internal, External

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Terms of Service3. Clusters

• Service-Level Warranties and Indemnities• Lateral Compatibility ('Can I get my data

out?')• Authentication and Authorisation• Second-Party Risk Exposure• Third-Party Risk Exposure• Data Deletion• Subject Access• Customer Service• Complaints-Handling – Internal, External

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More Advanced Protections• Am I going to get gouged? [Cost]• Can only appropriate people get in and do things?

[Authentication and Authorisation]• Can I get access to all data that you hold about me?

[Subject Access]• Is my data protected against you, them and the gods?

[Data Security]• Is my privacy protected against you, them and the gods?

[Privacy Controls]• If I terminate our relationship, will my data be irretrievably

deleted? [Fully Effective Withdrawal]• What happens to my data if I die? [Archival / Memorialisation]

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Second-Party Risk-ExposureScope Definition

• Not data relevant to the commercial relationship

• Not uses of data that are necessary as part of the service being provided

• 'Private data' intended for use by the consumer only

• 'Restricted data' intended to be accessible by some other parties, but not by parties generally

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Comparative Table



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Second-Party Risk-Exposure Summary of Results

• 3 – the Terms provide the ISP with no right to use the data (iinet, Internode, Yahoo!)

• 2 – use is authorised, but ... only in a manner directly related to the contract (Infinite, Zoho)

• 1 – use is limited to 'access' - although what that limitation means is unclear (Dropbox)

• 1 – use is authorised "to provide the service" - which can be readily interpreted as being the service as a whole not just the service provided to that user (MS Live)

•• 2 – the ISP has very substantial rights (Google, LinkedIn)

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Second-Party Risk-ExposureThe (Semi-Arbitrary) Scores

Dropbox 7.5?MS Live 7.0Yahoo! 4.5Zoho

4.5

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Second-Party Risk-ExposureThe [Semi-Arbitrary] Scores

Dropbox 7.5MS Live 7.0Yahoo! 4.5Zoho 4.5_____________________Google Gmail 0.0 Docs

0.0 Groups 0.0 Apps

0.0LinkedIn 0.0

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Cloudy Consumer ComputingAGENDA

• The Research Domain• Consumer Computing• Consumer Apps ==>> Consumer

Services• Consumers• Consumer Requirements and Risks

• The Research Method• Preliminary Results• (Tentative) Conclusions and Next Steps

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Preliminary PhasePolicy-Relevant Results

• Consumers dependent on C.C. Services are at dire riskService malfunctions, loss of data, provider exploitation of their data, low standards of accessibility and clarity of Terms, largely unfettered scope for providers to change the Terms

• Consumer Protections are essential, but seriously inadequateTransnationality of Internet commerce, dominance of US marketing morés, pro-corporate and anti-consumer stance of US regulators, meekness of regulators in other countries, the lack of organised resistance by consumer reps, advocacy bodies

• Serious consumer disappointments are inevitable• Recriminations against out-/cloud-sourcing are inevitable

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Preliminary PhaseResearch-Relevant Results

• The Research Method’s feasibility has been demonstrated

• The project is giving rise to new and deeper information• Complementary research is needed

In-depth studies of actual cases of harm to consumersIn-depth studies of scenarios likely to lead to harmStudies of different categories of serviceStudies of different categories of consumers• across the Generations• across different levels of consumer sophistication

• Results from all lines of research need to be combined • Feedforward is needed into providers’ Terms of Service

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Next Steps

Preliminary Phase• Studies of the Domain• Definition of Consumer

Requirements• Accessibility of ToS• In-Depth Study of 1 ToS• Comparative Study of



Empirical Phase• Validation of Consumer

Requirements• Sample Selection• In-Depth ToS Studies• Comparative ToS StudiesArticulation Phase• Discussions with Providers• Expression of Model Terms• Interactions with Consumer

Advocacy Organisations, Regulators, Policy Makers

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Will Consumers Come to be Banned From Owning General-Purpose

Computing Devices?

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Will Consumers Come to be Banned From Owning General-Purpose

Computing Devices?

Some powerful groups might like to achieve it

• Copyright-Dependent Corporations• Government Censors• The Moral Minority, who want governments to

extend censorship to whatever content the moral minority thinks the majority shouldn't have access to

• (Dominant) Computing Device Providers• Law Enforcement & National Security Agencies

(LEANs)• 'Fraud Experts'

Re 'fraud experts': http://www.itnews.com.au/News/263042,jailbroken-phones-not-safe-for-banking.aspx – 8 Jul 2011

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Roger ClarkeXamax Consultancy and PSARN Security, Canberra

Visiting Professor in Computer Science, ANUand in Cyberspace Law & Policy, UNSW

http://www.rogerclarke.com/EC/CCC.html, CCC-ANU.ppt

The Cloudy Future of Consumer Computing

Documents

Copyright 2009-11 1. Copyright 2009-11 2 Roger Clarke Xamax Consultancy and PSARN Security, Canberra Visiting Professor in Computer Science, ANU and in