Monday, December 16, 2002

Check out Translucent Databases - in it, Peter Wayner describes methods to construct databases that use one-way functions to scramble data and shield it from prying eyes. Unfortunately his examples are all in the overly-long-winded Java language, and I don't have the time nor money right now to analyze his code. Can anybody translate his examples into Cold Fusion? Here are some of the case studies (take your pick): A database that hides the position of Navy ships from enemies while simultaneously providing accurate information to those with proper authorization. An anti-rape database that identifies trends without containing any personal information. A babysitter scheduling service that matches parents with available sitters while protecting the sitters' identities and locations'. A department store database that guards the modesty of customers. A private accounting system that detects fraud without revealing information. A poker game for the Internet that prevents cheating. A pharmacy database for preventing dangerous drug interactions while keeping medical records secure. A tool for travel agents to protect their clients from stalkers and kidnappers. A stock exchange transaction mechanism designed to stop insider-trading. A website logfile tool that provides accurate counts of visitors while protecting their identities. A credit-card database for defending crucial e-commerce transactions. A patent search tool that doesn't reveal the nature and focus of the search. A conference bulletin board that routes messages without helping stalkers. A tool for studying the radon concentration in homes without maintaining personal information. An anti-money laundering database. I know one trick where the password is hashed before it is stored in the database - an administrator can reset the password but can't tell you what it is. But this trick doesn't cover cases where the information needs to be displayed to certain people. Know any others? 9:05:28 PM     Comments