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by stcredzero 4954 days ago
It all comes down to economics. Buy a beater bike, and sure, you can secure it well enough. (Mean time between stolen is low enough you don't care too much.) Buy a really nice one that everyone wants, and good luck with that.

Popular, recently produced media has too much value to too many attackers to protect. A celebrity's self shots -- same thing. A game console by Microsoft or Sony -- same thing.

> But it's absolutely possible to make it so insanely complex and difficult that no one will ever break it

A more accurate way to put it: If you make the return on effort ratio low enough, the probability of someone breaking it goes down, and it might even go down enough for you to get away with it for a useful amount of time.
1 comments
NateLawson 4954 days ago
It's not that simple. Sure, unpopular systems are more obscure and less likely to attract attention, but you're wrong in extending that to "if it's popular, it will be broken" (denying the antecedent).

As a counter-example, I propose DirecTV or even their competitor, Dish Network (Nagravision). Hacks of these systems are worth 6 figures, pay TV is widely desired, and there hasn't been a DTV hack since 2004. None.

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stcredzero 4954 days ago
> you're wrong in extending that to "if it's popular, it will be broken" (denying the antecedent).

Putting words in my mouth there. If it's popular, the probability it will be broken goes up.

> there hasn't been a DTV hack since 2004. None.

You're preaching to the choir here. Still, that's one tidbit I didn't already know. The old mainframe Mantis language is another example.

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