This site was born out of a love and passion for information technology, which has also matured as a result of professional experience in public and private companies. The blog boasts over 300 articles written with the utmost care in terms of both form (and I apologise if I have missed any oversights) and method.
On the method adopted
Slow blogging (doing things well, but slowly)
In this blog we do not chase news, but rather respond to the principle of slow journalism. This blog is not a newspaper, it is not a periodical, it is not a magazine: it is a blog and works according to the paradigm do well but take your time. Quality will always be preferred to speed: we do not publish information before we have checked it, we do not anticipate news without feedback, also because the topics that are dealt with in this blog require special attention. A large part, in fact, concerns data bre aches, i.e. the security holes revealed and used by hackers to launch their attacks.
Scientific rigour
For years, this site has been reporting the analysis of the most egregious cases without ever failing in the analytical and scientific character that each case deserves. This means that, among the highest priorities, there is the desire to document facts through the unequivocal presence of evidence gathered during the analysis of what was published by the targets affected and by the hackers themselves.
It is my firm belief that commenting on such news, for the purpose of polemics and unsupported by evidence, is something useless and harmful both for those who have been affected and for readers who, instead, can learn much more about computer security through an impartial and objective analysis of the facts. It is certainly more hard work, but it is also more respectful towards those who have suffered a data breach, who can undoubtedly take advantage of what they have discovered on the net to improve their computer security.
Finally, a small note of ‘transparency’: each article published on the edoardolimone.com portal is marked with a unique identifier. This automatically generated number makes it possible to refer to a specific article even if the title should change over time. In addition to the identifier, other information such as the date of publication, the time of publication and the author is also provided.
The identifier can be used to reach the article directly, for example:
https://www.edoardolimone.com/?p=12142No controversy, just facts
Impartiality of events is what you will find within the articles but, above all, it is what I demand from my students when analysing cases of attack. There is no room in this work for snide remarks and summary judgements, nor for personal opinions unless properly stated as such.
Last but not least, I would like to remind everyone who loves this work and these topics, or is just interested in them, that a data breach can hit anyone: in 2019 it hit the Data Protection Authority. Suffering a data breach is like having thieves in your house, it can happen to anyone. The skill lies in the mitigation of the consequences of a data breach and in the ability to properly manage communication and collaboration with authorities and customers (accountability, transparency, ethics, etc…). There is no skill in infallibility, infallibility simply does not exist.
No advertising
If there is one thing I detest, it is advertisements on sites that prevent reading or hinder peaceful reading. Here you will never find advertisements of any kind, nor intrusive pop-ups, nor any other kind of disturbance to your browsing. The contents are not intended to promote products, to sponsor companies, there are no articles written as a result of ‘advertising contracts’ or ‘sponsorships’.
Site rules
This site fully adheres to the netiquette rules of the Internet. This means that respectful and polite behaviour and messages aimed at not offending any of the participants in the discussions will be allowed and tolerated. It is a rule that, in times where ‘shouted’ or boisterous communication reigns supreme, may seem anachronistic but, in the writer’s opinion, politeness is the first important thing in life. Different opinions are welcome if expressed properly and with respect. Netiquette is not an etiquette, they are rules that the net gave itself a long time ago. If you want to know more, I invite you to read the Wikipedia page.
Adjustments
A correction can be reported at any time: either through the comments form at the end of a post, or by writing an e-mail by retrieving the address on the contact page. Corrections, however, must be requested with supporting evidence. On a few occasions, corrections have arrived in the form of‘requests‘ if not‘impositions‘ but not supported by any evidence. Those cases were not followed up: the authors received a polite reply but did not get the rectification. The reason for this is as follows.
The sources cited in the blog are all documented, very often directly with external links. As is the documentation referred to, often downloadable directly from the blog if not accessible via links. This work ensures transparency for the reader; disproving one source with another requires the same treatment. It requires that the reader be able to see for himself the original source underlying the rectification. In short: rectification is a sacrosanct right, but only when objective evidence is provided to support it.
Comments
It is possible to comment on most articles on this site. Comments are public and not all articles may be commented on: the ‘quota’ opening of comments allows a control on the quality of the content and avoids, above all, SPAM, which (on blogging platforms in particular) is really widespread. Moderating content takes time and, as explained, rude content that does not respect the principles of netiquette set out in the previous paragraph is not allowed. Anyone can leave a comment, but it is advisable (and good common sense) to leave a name and surname so as to facilitate discussion. As the owner and manager of this portal, I will do my utmost to keep the tone at a level of civility and education that allows for a calm and constructive dialogue rather than yet another brawl. For the sake of completeness, I reproduce the most important rules for discussion and comments:
- Do not respond rudely (or worse, generate flame) in a person’s public space or in your own. Besides lowering the level of general discussion, it also often results in an offensive or unclear result for the reader. For personal diatribes, private messages should be used.
- Maintain privacy-friendly behaviour, avoiding including references to third parties in the public spaces of a profile unless they have given their consent. Never publish photos or videos depicting recognisable persons not consenting to appear on the social network. This also applies to YouTube, Flickr and all websites, including forums. If necessary, graphics processing techniques may be used to make faces or vehicle registration plates unrecognisable.
- Avoid making comments with advertising purposes on photos or videos without the consent of the person concerned.
- If you find an interesting post and want to publish it in the comments, share it so that the source can be traced or quote the source itself. Do not use copy/paste implying that the post is yours.
As you can see, these are rules of ‘good social living’ and require no special attention other than respect and politeness. Let us try to keep them to prevent the internet from turning into a hellhole. In order to leave a comment , it is not necessary to be registered on the blog, but two pieces of information are required: your name and your email address. Obviously, the latter will not be made public. It is clear that each commentator will be responsible for the statements made in his or her comments.
Closed comments
On some articles the possibility to comment is deactivated for various reasons, the main one being the ‘seniority’ of the published article. Not being able to comment on an article does not mean not being able to write to the undersigned(again via the contact page), requesting the reopening of comments or the direct publication of what has been written via e-mail.