Re Experts criticize US electronic devices ban on some flights from Middle East

["Dave Farber" <farber () gmail com>]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Mohammad Irshid <him () moeirs com>
> Date: March 21, 2017 at 12:32:10 PM EDT
> To: ip <ip () listbox com>
> Cc: dave () farber net, dewayne () warpspeed com
> Subject: Re: [IP] Experts criticize US electronic devices ban on some flights from Middle East
>
> They have a valid point to ban such devices (and a valid fear), if and only if, threats mentioned are real and they 
> have a valid source.
>
> The point which they are failing to catch is that such solutions won’t be useful on the long term. I personally 
> believe that advanced screening, better technology, advanced detection, and generally review how US. airports work in 
> terms of security would be more viable and solid that just banning electronic devices.
>
> Trump’s administration need to think of the long run, not just a solution that works for a month or two.
>
> –Mohammad
>
> > On Mar 21, 2017, at 5:18 PM, Dave Farber <farber () gmail com> wrote:
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Begin forwarded message:
> >
> > > From: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne () warpspeed com>
> > > Date: March 21, 2017 at 9:14:29 AM EDT
> > > To: Multiple recipients of Dewayne-Net <dewayne-net () warpspeed com>
> > > Subject: [Dewayne-Net] Experts criticize US electronic devices ban on some flights from Middle East
> > > Reply-To: dewayne-net () warpspeed com
> > >
> > > Experts criticize US electronic devices ban on some flights from Middle East
> > > Technologists say new rules against electronics ‘larger than a cellphone’ on flights from 10 airports seem 
> > > illogical and at odds with basic computer science
> > > By Sam Thielman in New York and Sam Levin in San Francisco
> > > Mar 21 2017
> > > <https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/mar/21/us-electronic-devices-ban-flights-tsa-airports>
> > >
> > > The US government’s unexpected ban on laptops, iPads and other electronics “larger than a cellphone” on certain 
> > > flights has sparked criticisms from technology experts, who say the new rules appear to be at odds with basic 
> > > computer science.
> > >
> > > Following the distribution of a “confidential” edict from the US transportation safety administration (TSA), 
> > > authorities confirmed that the US will now require flights from specific Middle Eastern airports to prohibit 
> > > passengers from carrying certain electronics. 
> > >
> > > Senior Trump administration officials cited “evaluated intelligence” that terrorists favored “smuggling explosive 
> > > devices in various consumer items” in a hastily convened press briefing on Monday night, hours after news broke of 
> > > the planned prohibition on in-cabin devices. 
> > >
> > > The ban, which allows the devices to be stowed in checked in baggage, affects flights from ten airports in Jordan, 
> > > Egypt, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, according to the US department of 
> > > homeland security (DHS).
> > >
> > > While DHS officials claimed the rules would help prevent terrorist attacks on commercial airlines, tech experts 
> > > questioned the safety implications of the ban. If there are concerns about laptops on board being used as 
> > > explosives, those same risks could exist in checked baggage, they said. Additionally, many smartphones, which are 
> > > not banned, have the same capabilities as larger devices. 
> > >
> > > “It’s weird, because it doesn’t match a conventional threat model,” said Nicholas Weaver, researcher at the 
> > > International Computer Science Institute at the University of California, Berkeley. “If you assume the attacker is 
> > > interested in turning a laptop into a bomb, it would work just as well in the cargo hold.”
> > >
> > > He added: “If you’re worried about hacking, a cell phone is a computer.” 
> > >
> > > Some experts, and even the Federal Aviation Administration, have also increasingly raised concerns that the 
> > > shipment of lithium batteries in airplane cargo, poses a serious fire risk.
> > >
> > > During the press call, numerous questions about the meaning of “larger than a cell phone” did not provide clarity. 
> > >
> > > “To be honest, guys, there’s a pretty universal understanding of where we’re at,” said one exasperated official 
> > > after repeated questions on how large a phone could be before it qualified as a tablet and was banned. Requirements 
> > > appear to be at the discretion of the airlines. 
> > >
> > > Passengers must submit to the ban “regardless of status and pre-clearance”, according to DHS officials.
> > >
> > > A state department official referred reporters to “several terrorist events on airplanes in the last year”, all 
> > > outside the US. When pressed, a Homeland Security official said only one incident involved a bomb smuggled into the 
> > > cabin – an explosion resulting in a single fatality on a Somali carrier called Daallo that does not fly to the US. 
> > >
> > > Bruce Schneier, a security technologist, called the new rules an “onerous travel restriction”.
> > >
> > > [snip]
> > >
> > > Dewayne-Net RSS Feed: <http://dewaynenet.wordpress.com/feed/>
> >
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