Is security activation critical in Peru ?

[Ivan Krstić]

On Apr 25, 2008, at 1:02 AM, info at olpc-peru.info wrote:
> is Software activation critical? If the XOs are deployed in the  
> poorest towns then there is small possibilities for theft and  
> robberies.   In those small villages (with 100 families  
> approximately) all of them know each other: you can not enter or  
> leave the village without been noticed (or allowed).  Those towns  
> are from 3,500 to 5,000 meters altitude and there is around 5,000 in  
> Peru.  No young gangs there.

For what it's worth, the Peru implementation leads have very strong  
feelings to the contrary. In Arahuay, a mountaintop village in the  
middle of nowhere, a small satellite dish providing rudimentary  
telephone service was stolen _twice_ and never recovered.
> well... some guys here will be more than happy to ask just $10 for  
> doing the same job (again my words come without any proud on them).


You misunderstand the point of OLPC security. It isn't to make attacks  
infeasible, but to substantially raise the bar. As it stands, the  
security mechanisms the XO offers -- far from the full implementation  
of the Bitfrost spec -- are already superior to virtually all  
mainstream products I'm familiar with.

--
Ivan Krstić <krstic at solarsail.hcs.harvard.edu> | http://radian.org