Internet groups bringing security guru to NZ

Kiwis will have a chance to hear one of the world’s foremost authorities on computer security share his thoughts next month, with Bruce Schneier, author of 11 books including Schneier On Security and Secrets and Lies: Digital Security in a Networked World, to speak at two events in Wellington on May 1.

The main talk will be a two-hour lecture at Wellington’s St James Theatre, in which Schneier will discuss the ideas in his latest book, Liars and Outliers: Enabling the Trust that Society Needs to Thrive. In it, he discusses the importance of understanding the mechanisms of trust in today’s hyper-connected society.

Schneier will also deliver a keynote address at the Department of Internal Affairs’ Identity Conference 2012.

The visit has been organised by non-profit cybersecurity group the New Zealand Internet Task Force, with support from InternetNZ and Telecom.

InternetNZ chief executive Vikram Kumar says Schneier is ‘a personal hero’.

"As an example, he coined the great term ‘security theatre’, to describe steps that give the impression that something is being done to improve security while actually doing little or nothing to improve security,” Kumar says.

The talk will take place at 10am, and those wishing to attend will need to RSVP here by midday on April 26. If you can’t make it, the event will be live streamed on the NZTIF website.