Joel Rosenblatt

Director of Computer and Network Security

Columbia University


When Does Privacy Trump Security?

Posted on: 18 Feb 2016

I have been watching the case I will call Apple vs FBI carefully.  It is not quite David vs Goliath, because Apple is not some two-bit company with limited resources,…

The Holidays and the Internet – What Could Go Wrong?

Posted on: 04 Dec 2015

According to the internetretailer.com, holiday sales are up 15%-16% this year online, but down 4.7%-10% instore.  If I were in the identity theft business, I would have a hard time…

It’s Time to Put Common Sense into Security

Posted on: 25 Aug 2015

A few weeks ago, my son and his family came to visit us from Japan (he is a Captain in the Marine Corps and stationed there).  We took a day…

How Saving a Buck will Undermine Security Every Time

Posted on: 30 Jul 2015

I just saw an article stating that Chrysler is sending out USB drives to car owners to update the WiFi connect features in their Jeeps. For those of you that missed…

Are We Painting Ourselves into a Technological Corner? The NYSE, United Airlines and WSJ Tech Glitches

Posted on: 08 Jul 2015

It was a bad day for the Internet.  At some time that morning, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) shut down, the Wall Street Journal  (WSJ) web site broke and the United Airlines…

Lawyers Gone Wild – Document Preservation Requests Are Out of Control

Posted on: 01 Jul 2015

I don’t know how many of the readers out there have gotten to deal with the joy of document preservation, but let me tell you, it is not a lot…

How to Turn 4 Million Into 18 Million

Posted on: 23 Jun 2015

The story about the Office of Personnel Management getting hacked this week was, unfortunately, not a big surprise to anyone in the security world.  How it got hacked, by phishing,…

Who Am I?

Posted on: 09 Jun 2015

I frequently talk to myself.  I think that this is mostly OK, except when I have an argument.  The other day, I asked myself, “Who am I?” and I was…

Why Does My Secret Decoder Ring Keep On Breaking?

Posted on: 26 May 2015

I’ve been around the computer business for a long time.  Way back, before the Web and even before computers, if you wanted to send a secret message to someone, you…

What Is an Act of War?

Posted on: 12 May 2015

I went to the Educause Security Professionals Conference last week.  I have been going to this conference for many years and always take home something useful.  This year, James Bamford,…