top | item 1819539

Using Guilt Instead of Cryptography

10 points| privacyguru | 15 years ago |securityweek.com | reply

6 comments

order
[+] StavrosK|15 years ago|reply
Yeah, let's implement this, and now everyone has to think twice before buying an app because they see a dollar bill leaving their hand rather than some abstract number.

It'll be great for sales!

[+] wzdd|15 years ago|reply
I think it's a great idea, but doesn't an abstract representation of cash also benefit the merchant, because it makes people more likely to make spur-of-the-moment purchases? Making this process much more concrete and emphasising the "taking your money away from you" aspect might make everybody less inclined to pay for things and thus might make a payment system based on this idea unpopular.
[+] buzzblog|15 years ago|reply
I like the camera idea. It would probably work just as well if the unauthorized user merely believed a picture was being taken; just have a pop-up message saying so before the transaction is finalized and skip the picture altogether.
[+] JoachimSchipper|15 years ago|reply
Wouldn't any halfway smart person cover the camera?

Just saying that a confirmation email will be sent is likely not much less effective than a camera - in either case, the owner will find out that someone did something nasty.

[+] CWuestefeld|15 years ago|reply
I changed the start-up image on my GPS. It's now got a background of a satellite, with text saying "Your position has been relayed to the GPS system".

Obviously that's preposterous, but my theory is that it might make some thief wary of stealing it.

[+] privacyguru|15 years ago|reply
Agreed - We just need more devices with front facing cameras - which definitely will happen. Add the fact that location/time data could captured associated with it as well and it's likely make some people at least think twice!