Privacy – Odinn Security

Blockchains, Data Protection, and GDPR

By Edward Thomson | July 2, 2017 | Comments 0 Comment

Recently I came across an interesting problem which is to do with data regulation and blockchains: what are the regulations surrounding storing data on blockchains? While there are very few regulations which are specific to blockchain technology it is worth considering which existing laws already apply to blockchain technology. Governments, and their associated regulatory institutions, have been fairly hands off but that’s not to say that no laws apply.

The SEC in the US have strict laws around registered exchanges. Simply setting up an exchange using blockchain technology in order to skirt around the SEC isn’t going to cut it.

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The people behind malware and cybercrime

By Edward Thomson | March 21, 2017 | Comments 0 Comment

As interesting as the techniques used in creating new malware are the people behind the code and the lengths they go to in order to hide themselves. The malware writers are a small but important piece of the puzzle however they are part of a wider category of cybercriminal.

In this piece I explore some of the people behind well known malware and other cybercrimes. Some people, and their actions, may be defined as criminal in a true legal sense but I make no statement on the morality of them. Is cyber-vigilantism justified (“doing right”) even if the actions are illegal? I have my own opinion but here I will try to stick to report facts with some opinion of personalities rather than of their morality.

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Investigating the security of anonymous messaging over the Internet

By Edward Thomson | August 27, 2016 | Comments 0 Comment

The topic of strongly encrypted communication has been receiving a lot of press coverage over the last few years and is a politically sensitive issue. Adding the possibility of making such communication anonymous makes it more sensitive. This work is based upon the thesis that I submitted for my MSc. The layout of the sections plus some of the wording has been tweaked to fit better as blog posts. The intent is to present the information across several pages.

Anonymity over the internet — Can we be anonymous on the Internet?

In this post I am introducing a new section of the blog which will be devoted to anonymity and privacy.

This blog will investigate to what degree anonymous communication over the Internet is possible. The result is unclear: theoretically possible but unlikely to be true in most real situations. Sources will be provided where necessary and may be acaedmia in nature or from the media. The combination of the two will show the cultural relevant of the topic and to highlight the interface between researchers, software developers and the general public who have no formal training in this area.

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