DRM, security, or both? How do we decide?
338 | Sat 02 Aug 11:45 a.m.–12:30 p.m.
Presented by
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Matthew is a long-term free software advocate, Linux developer, and low-level system poker. He is especially interested in identifying ways to use technology to protect users without restricting their freedoms, and is a passionate advocate in users having the right to modify systems they own.
Abstract
An easy way to define malware is "Software that I don't want running on my computer". And one way to ensure that you're protected from malware would be to ensure that your computer only runs software you want to run. But how is technology that allows that different to technology that allows someone *else* to choose what software your computer runs? Someone who isn't necessarily motivated by your best interests? How do we decide what is security, and how do we decide what is DRM?
This presentation will cover various technologies that allow general purpose computers to become less general purpose, and discuss whether they are of net benefit to users or a net risk to their freedoms. It will discuss whether TPMs are actually locking you down, whether secure boot has been a success or a failure, how immutable distros and app packaging play into this, and give you some hope that we can take the tools that were made to restrict us and repurpose them to protect us.
An easy way to define malware is "Software that I don't want running on my computer". And one way to ensure that you're protected from malware would be to ensure that your computer only runs software you want to run. But how is technology that allows that different to technology that allows someone *else* to choose what software your computer runs? Someone who isn't necessarily motivated by your best interests? How do we decide what is security, and how do we decide what is DRM? This presentation will cover various technologies that allow general purpose computers to become less general purpose, and discuss whether they are of net benefit to users or a net risk to their freedoms. It will discuss whether TPMs are actually locking you down, whether secure boot has been a success or a failure, how immutable distros and app packaging play into this, and give you some hope that we can take the tools that were made to restrict us and repurpose them to protect us.