US Navy Develops World's Worst E-reader 249
First time accepted submitter Dimetrodon (2714071) writes "It is an unspoken rule of military procurement that any IT or communications technology will invariably be years behind what is commercially available or technically hobbled to ensure security. One case in point is the uncomfortably backronymed NeRD, or Navy e-Reader Device, an electronic book so secure the 300 titles it holds can never be updated. Ever."
In the navy (Score:5, Insightful)
security > usability
No sir, that's just my Kindle. I didn't load classified files on to it, I swear!
What? Our secret base was compromised because Private Biff's iPad, which tracked everywhere we went, was stolen by a hooker at the last port?
There's a reason books can't be updated (Score:5, Insightful)
It's not like they "forgot" that users might want to add new books, the inability of any updatable storage was a design requirement to prevent it from being used for espionage or as a channel to inadvertently bring malware aboard a ship.
This is to prevent it being used to smuggle secret military data ashore, take illicit photos, introduce computer malware or record covert conversations.
Though it seems that there are so many ways for a person to smuggle a MicroSD card into a secure area that an eReader is probably not a huge concern.
Comment removed (Score:3, Insightful)
makes sense (Score:5, Insightful)
"The company has already delivered similar gadgets to members of the US Army and other military personnel.
The brainchild of the Navy's General Library Program, the electronic ink Kindle-alike has no internet capability, no removable storage, no camera and no way to add or delete content. This is to prevent it being used to smuggle secret military data ashore, take illicit photos, introduce computer malware or record covert conversations."
Actually makes sense to me.....
Makes sense (Score:3, Insightful)
Can't have machines capable of transporting unauthorized files or tracking your fleet location on board. Would be idiotic.
This provides a way to give sailors a decent library of books to read without having to find a place to have a dead tree library on a cramped ship.
The concept is perfectly sound, despite obvious failings in the design/specs (only 300 books, and probably thousands of dollars each, hah)
Serves a purpose (Score:0, Insightful)
In spite of the knee-jerk reaction of "That POS can't even be updated!" that the summary seems to be triggering, I think perhaps it was designed this way on purpose? Think about it. 300 documents, could be manuals, laws, whatever. If each of those is to be readily available per person, which is smaller, 1 eReader, or 300 books? Which cost more to produce? 1 reader as opposed to 300 books? ect... The navy probably doesn't want the info in those to change either, hence the no update.
Seems to work pretty good for its inteded purpose to me.
Re:There's a reason books can't be updated (Score:5, Insightful)
Better Headline (Score:5, Insightful)
"Navy Invents E-reader that is Secure, Meets its Needs; Hated By People Who Will Never See or Use It"
Re:There's a reason books can't be updated (Score:5, Insightful)
Though it seems that there are so many ways for a person to smuggle a MicroSD card into a secure area that an eReader is probably not a huge concern.
I'd think it would be more of an issue with someone potentially editing or replacing the books, changing vital details in operation manuals. If you cannot change the books, at least you know exactly what they contain.
Very bad summary title (Score:5, Insightful)
This is not the "Worst" e-Reader ever.
Why do I say that?
Because it is working as designed.
Frankly, for certain high-security situations this kind of "immutable" device is the only kind of device that would be allowed in. So it's either something like this, or books-on-tape/CD/paper/something else.
For slightly less-but-still-very-secure situations you could allow some type of external read-only, no-processor-chip-onboard "expansion pack" memory so that the book content could be switched out without getting a whole new device. I wouldn't use USB though, as that requires a processor on the stick itself.
Also, I'd make very sure the data format was really "data only" not something that could, in theory, be a vector for "code." This would rule out PDF and PostScript. In other words, it would be pretty limited.
The things you absolutely do not want for this type of device in a high-security environment are:
* Any ability to "run code"
* Any wireless
* Any ability to export data other than through the screen (you can't stop someone from photographing the screen)
* Any ability to "hack" the device without physical access and accessing it in a non-standard way (e.g. with a screwdriver). This means the software must be proven to never do anything "bad" other than "just die, requiring a reboot" if the operator is tricked into giving it even carefully-crafted/designed-to-do-bad-things bad data.
In some cases, you do not want it displaying anything other than what is "whitelisted." This can be done by either only displaying properly-digitally-signed files or, as in this case, by only providing a limited set of files and "sealing" the device.
Re:Hmmm, So its like a book? (Score:4, Insightful)
This is not too different from commercial aircraft.
Take a Boeing 747. They've been in production for almost 50 years, been through dozens of iterations and tweaks, man different variations, and quite possibly no two are exactly alike.
You essentially need to be able to get the full manual as it applies to any given aircraft, because over time there's been upgrades, changes, recalls, and everything else you can imagine.
When you have a few million parts flying in formation, making sure you know which specific parts are in which specific plane is a Very Important Task.
And, compared to the cost of, say, an aircraft carrier of a submarine, the cost of that is pretty insignificant.
Re:There's a reason books can't be updated (Score:2, Insightful)
EM emissions can get out of a Faraday cage. Just not in.
Re:In the navy (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:I'm sure it's perennial thrillers (Score:4, Insightful)
It's a long assumption that the sun will live long enough, at the pace GRRM writes...