Communications of the ACM
Innovation Is Overrated: A Provocation
Digital innovation is not working in the interest of the whole of society. It is time to radically rethink its purpose without…
From ACM Opinion
A Handy Way to Foil Atm Skimmer Scams
I spent several hours this past week watching video footage from hidden cameras that skimmer thieves placed at ATMs to surreptitiously record customers entering...
From ACM Opinion
10 Things We'd Like to See Tim Cook Do in His Next Year at Apple
It's officially the anniversary of the day Steve Jobs resigned as CEO of Apple and let Tim Cook take the reins.
From ACM Opinion
Why You Should Probably Disable Java on Your Browser Right Now
Hackers have found a flaw in Oracle's Java software that allows them to break into users' computers and install nasty malware, security experts report.
From ACM News
Massive Cyberattack: Act 1 of Israeli Strike on Iran?
Talk in Israel of a military strike on Iranian nuclear facilities has reached a fever pitch.
From ACM Opinion
The ncanny Valley of Internet Advertising
If you ask an Internet ad guy to defend himself—to explain why you, dear Web surfer, should feel comfortable letting him serve you ads based on everything you do...
From ACM Opinion
Giving In to the Surveillance State
In March 2002, John M. Poindexter, a former national security adviser to President Ronald Reagan, sat down with Gen. Michael V. Hayden, the director of the National...
From ACM Opinion
Christopher Soghoian
Christopher Soghoian sniffs out security holes and privacy shortcomings on the Web. Then he urges companies that are responsible—Google, AT&T, and Dropbox have...
From ACM Opinion
New Guide from Eff: Keeping Your Site Alive
Denial of service attacks—flooding Web sites with traffic in order to make them unavailable to the public—have become an increasingly popular way to take down or...
From Communications of the ACM
Q&A: What Women Want
Harvey Mudd College president Maria Klawe talks about increasing the number of women who study computer science.
From Communications of the ACM
Seven Lessons From Bad History
Journalists, historians, and the invention of email.
From Communications of the ACM
Don't Feel Bad If You Can't Predict the Future
Wise experts and powerful machines are no match for chaotic events and human declarations. Beware of their predictions and be humble in your own.
From Communications of the ACM
Automated Prediction: Perception, Law, and Policy
A few predictions about predictions.
From Communications of the ACM
The Need to Balance Innovation and Implementation in Broadening Participation
Seeking to improve the process for writing and reviewing proposals for new educational programs.
From Communications of the ACM
Author Order: What Science Can Learn from the Arts
Some thoughts about author order in research papers.
From ACM Opinion
Will the Next Election Be Hacked?
Two years ago, hackers gained access to an online voting system created by the District of Columbia and altered every ballot on behalf of their own preferred candidates...
From ACM Opinion
There's Only One Truly Open Platform: The Web
As Twitter and Facebook continue to fight a variety of skirmishes in the ongoing "platform wars," with both companies trying to control as much of their networks...
From ACM Opinion
Why High-Frequency Trading Doesn't Compute
Wall Street is no autobahn. Traders pushing pedal to the metal risk hurtling into the Buttonwood Trees.
From ACM Opinion
Trust: Ill-Advised in a Digital Age
Bruce Schneieer ordered a Coke, no ice, at the Rio casino on a Saturday afternoon. I ordered Diet Coke, also no ice, and handed the bartender an American Express...
From ACM Opinion