Time to Protect Yourself From State-Sponsored Attacks

It has taken some time but we finally have succumbed to the delights of a certain kitchen utensil. Years of resisting George, John and the seductive talents of Penelope, had left me more determined than ever to resist at all costs. The result; a plethora of appliances – eight at last count – to produce the perfect cup of coffee at the right moment, cluttering kitchen surfaces and cupboards, and never quite getting it right. After all, each appliance needs and produces its own unique type of coffee.  And it’s difficult, when you’re the only serious coffee drinker, to convince ‘management’ at home that such a thing as a CCM (Centralized Coffee Management) system is essential.

And the story is similar with encryption keys and certificates. Look around any mid- to large-size organization and you will find SSL, SSH and Symmetric keys and digital certificates scattered around – and each type will also have several variants. Then there are all the different “utensils” which use the keys, from applications to a myriad of appliances, as well as a host of built-in “tools” to manage each variety.  The result is more management systems than the average household’s coffee machines.