Letters to PC World Online (2/28/00)

Who's Afraid of Big, Bad Hackers?

I work as a senior network security engineer. The recent hacker attacks on major commercial Web sites [ "Users Feel Aftershocks of Web Attacks"] have drawn a horde of media attention and drummed up the concerns of popular America. However, the information being presented has been blown horribly out of proportion, and is causing misunderstandings throughout the industry.

The recent attacks against Yahoo, eBay, Amazon.com, and others are akin to someone coming along in the middle of the night and placing a 4-foot-tall circle of dirt around your car while it is parked in the driveway. If that happened to you, would you be afraid to take your credit card with you to the car the next day?

Security is essential to operating an online business, just as it is mandatory in an office environment or retail store. Over time it will be improved dramatically, and a great deal of the problems we see today will no longer plague Internet users. However, one must always gauge the severity of an attack by the effect it has on the systems in question; this kind of vandalism [denial of service] does not compromise confidential information.

The attacks to be concerned about are ones in which confidential information is removed from the affected systems, like the recent extortion attempts against online retailers [ "Hacker Posts Credit Card Numbers"] and the controversy over X.com ["Thieves Try to Hit Online Bank"].

For the record, I will continue to purchase products and services online, because I have confidence in my professional experience, and the knowledge of an educated consumer.

James Bly

Your Budget Can Recover From Data-Recovery Services

I read your review of PowerQuest's Lost & Found data-recovery utility ["Recover Impossibly Lost Data"]. I disagree with the comment: "As a last resort, you could turn to a data-recovery service--but you'll have to take out a second mortgage just to pay the initial bench fee."

My company, Dataquest International, offers a "no fix, no fee" policy with a minimum charge of $480 and discounts for home users, which we believe is fair considering the price of data-recovery software.

Please amend your comments. That sort of publicity can do data-recovery services a lot of harm, as PC World.com is probably a first port of call for many people when they have a problem with their hard drive.

John Wilson

--Edited by Arin Hailey