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Who Are the Shadow Brokers?
From ACM Opinion

Who Are the Shadow Brokers?

In 2013, a mysterious group of hackers that calls itself the Shadow Brokers stole a few disks full of National Security Agency secrets.

Online Voting Won't Save Democracy
From ACM Opinion

Online Voting Won't Save Democracy

Technology can do a lot more to make our elections more secure and reliable, and to ensure that participation in the democratic process is available to all.

How Twitter Bots Are Shaping the Election
From ACM Opinion

How Twitter Bots Are Shaping the Election

There is power in numbers, or so the saying goes. But statistics mean different things to different people. Take Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, for instance.

How Long ­ntil Hackers Start Faking Leaked Documents?
From ACM Opinion

How Long ­ntil Hackers Start Faking Leaked Documents?

In the past few years, the devastating effects of hackers breaking into an organization's network, stealing confidential data, and publishing everything have been...

How Electronic Voting Could ­ndermine the Election
From ACM Opinion

How Electronic Voting Could ­ndermine the Election

It's 2016: What possible reason is there to vote on paper? When we use touchscreens to communicate, work, and shop, why can't we use similar technology to vote?

What Happens If Gps Fails?
From ACM Opinion

What Happens If Gps Fails?

In only took thirteen millionths of a second to cause a whole lot of problems.

Will the Constitution Protect Your Next Smartphone?
From ACM Opinion

Will the Constitution Protect Your Next Smartphone?

More than a decade ago, the keynote speaker at a major annual cybersecurity conference strode into the spotlight and predicted the death of the password.

The Privacy Problem with Digital Assistants
From ACM Opinion

The Privacy Problem with Digital Assistants

For the last century, we've imagined a future where we're surrounded by robotic butlers that are classy, smart, and discreet.

You Can't Escape Data Surveillance In America
From ACM Opinion

You Can't Escape Data Surveillance In America

In America, surveillance has always played an outsized role in the relationship between creditors and debtors.

How Self-Driving Cars Will Threaten Privacy
From ACM Opinion

How Self-Driving Cars Will Threaten Privacy

Allow me to join you, if I may, on your morning commute sometime in the indeterminate future.

Can Google's Driverless Car Project Survive a Fatal Accident?
From ACM Opinion

Can Google's Driverless Car Project Survive a Fatal Accident?

Everybody knew this day would come.

How the Internet of Things Limits Consumer Choice
From ACM Opinion

How the Internet of Things Limits Consumer Choice

In theory, the Internet of Things—the connected network of tiny computers inside home appliances, household objects, even clothing—promises to make your life easier...

Pop Culture Is Finally Getting Hacking Right
From ACM Opinion

Pop Culture Is Finally Getting Hacking Right

The idea of a drill-wielding hacker who runs a deep-web empire selling drugs to teens seems like a fantasy embodying the worst of digital technology.

Scores of Scores: How Companies Are Reducing Consumers to Single Numbers
From ACM Opinion

Scores of Scores: How Companies Are Reducing Consumers to Single Numbers

In his novel Super Sad True Love Story, Gary Shteyngart imagined ubiquitous poles installed on sidewalks that display people’s credit scores as they walked by.

If You're Not Paranoid, You're Crazy
From ACM Opinion

If You're Not Paranoid, You're Crazy

I knew we'd bought walnuts at the store that week, and I wanted to add some to my oatmeal.

Humans, Not Robots, Are the Real Reason Artificial Intelligence Is Scary
From ACM Opinion

Humans, Not Robots, Are the Real Reason Artificial Intelligence Is Scary

Unfortunately, much of the recent outcry against artificial-intelligence weapons has been confused, conjuring robot takeovers of mankind.

How to Write About World War Iii
From ACM Opinion

How to Write About World War Iii

One of us first fought World War III from the backseat of a station wagon headed toward Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. For the other, it was at an island cabin on...

That Time the CIA Bugged a Cat to Spy on the Soviets
From ACM Opinion

That Time the CIA Bugged a Cat to Spy on the Soviets

My favorite story about American spying is one I've never been able to verify with the Central Intelligence Agency, and not for lack of trying.

Beware the Listening Machines
From ACM Opinion

Beware the Listening Machines

One of my great pleasures in life is attending conferences on fields I'm intrigued by, but know nothing about.

Facebook Is Eating the Internet
From ACM Careers

Facebook Is Eating the Internet

Facebook, it seems, is unstoppable. The social publishing site, just 11 years old, is now the dominant force in American media.
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