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
Review: 'dark Territory' Illuminates Cybersecurity’s Shadows
Fred Kaplan has written a consistently eye-opening history of our government’s efforts to effectively manage our national security in the face of the largely open...
From ACM Opinion
Can Google's Driverless Car Project Survive a Fatal Accident?
Everybody knew this day would come.
From ACM Opinion
Ford's Futurist Knows Kids Today See Status in Their Smartphones, Not Cars
There can't be many job titles out there cooler than "futurist." And earlier this week, I sat down with Sheryl Connelly, who holds that position at the Ford Motor...
From ACM Opinion
This One Thing Could Hurt Apple's Case in Washington
Apple's fight with the FBI is widening beyond the courts.
From ACM Opinion
Forcing Apple to Hack That Iphone Sets a Dangerous Precedent
Are Apple and other tech companies somehow against America's national security if they create uncrackable encryption software that government investigators or even...
From ACM Opinion
This Is Why People Fear the 'internet of Things'
Imagine buying an internet-enabled surveillance camera, network attached storage device, or home automation gizmo, only to find that it secretly and constantly...
From ACM Opinion
How Tim Cook Aims to Profit from Protecting Privacy
Would you stop buying Apple's products if it decided to help the FBI open a terrorist's iPhone?
From ACM Opinion
If Apple Aids Terrorists and the Fbi Is Big Brother… Whom Do We Root For?
There's been a lot of bluster about the ongoing encryption saga between the FBI and Apple.
From ACM Opinion
Snowden Lawyer: Bill of Rights Was Meant to Make Government's Job 'more Difficult'
Ben Wizner, a top attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union, is probably best known for being one of the lawyers representing Ed Snowden, the former National...
From ACM Opinion
How Apple's Stand Against the Fbi Could Backfire
The skirmish between Apple and the FBI is quickly escalating to a battle royal, a fight to the finish over lofty principles and national values, involving not just...
From ACM Opinion
How to Build an nbeatable Poker-Playing Robot
Each summer, the computer-science researchers behind the world's best poker-playing robots bring their creations together for a tournament.
From ACM Opinion
We Could Not Look the Survivors in the Eye If We Did Not Follow This Lead
The San Bernardino litigation isn't about trying to set a precedent or send any kind of message.
From ACM Opinion
To Keep America Safe, Embrace Drone Warfare
"Are you sure they're there?" the decision maker asks. "They" are Qaeda operatives who have been planning attacks against the United States.
From ACM Opinion
Telegraph to the Iphone: A Short History of Corporate Defiance
The high-stakes stalemate between Apple and the Justice Department isn’t the first time that Washington and Silicon Valley have come to a showdown over security...
From ACM Opinion
The Plan to Connect Everyone in the World By 2020 Is Already Off the Rails
Without cheaper devices and more affordable broadband plans, universal Internet access won't be possible until 2042, according to a new report.
From ACM News
Apple's Fbi Battle Is Complicated. Here's What's Really Going On
The news this week that a magistrate ordered Apple to help the FBI hack an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino shooter suspects has polarized the nation—and...
From ACM Opinion
Nsa Chief: 'paris Would Not Have Happened' Without Encrypted Apps
National Security Agency Director Adm. Michael Rogers warns that encryption is making it "much more difficult" for the agency to intercept the communications of...
From ACM Opinion
The President's Nsa Advisory Board Finally Gets a Tech Expert
It's taken more than a decade, but a critical oversight board tasked with advising the president on the privacy and civil liberties implications of the NSA's surveillance...
From ACM Opinion
The Apple Fight Isn't About Encryption
The most striking aspect of Apple's message to customers on Tuesday wasn't the rejection of U.S. authorities' demand that the company help them break the encryption...
From ACM Opinion