The RISKS Digest or Forum On Risks to the Public in Computers and Related Systems is an online

periodical A periodical literature (also called a periodical publication or simply a periodical) is a published work that appears in a new edition on a regular schedule. The most familiar example is a newspaper, but a magazine or a journal are also examples ...

published since 1985 by the Committee on Computers and Public Policy of the

Association for Computing Machinery The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) is a US-based international learned society for computing. It was founded in 1947 and is the world's largest scientific and educational computing society. The ACM is a non-profit professional member ...

. The editor is

Peter G. Neumann Peter Gabriel Neumann (born 1932) is a computer-science researcher who worked on the Multics operating system in the 1960s. He edits the RISKS Digest columns for ACM ''Software Engineering Notes'' and ''Communications of the ACM''. He founded ...

. It is a moderated forum concerned with the security and safety of

computer A computer is a machine that can be programmed to Execution (computing), carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as C ...

software Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work. At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...

, and technological systems. Security, and risk, here are taken broadly; RISKS is concerned not merely with so-called

security hole Vulnerabilities are flaws in a computer system that weaken the overall security of the device/system. Vulnerabilities can be weaknesses in either the hardware itself, or the software that runs on the hardware. Vulnerabilities can be exploited by ...

s in software, but with

unintended consequence In the social sciences, unintended consequences (sometimes unanticipated consequences or unforeseen consequences) are outcomes of a purposeful action that are not intended or foreseen. The term was popularised in the twentieth century by Ameri ...

s and hazards stemming from the design (or lack thereof) of automated systems. Other recurring subjects include

cryptography Cryptography, or cryptology (from grc, , translit=kryptós "hidden, secret"; and ''graphein'', "to write", or ''-logia'', "study", respectively), is the practice and study of techniques for secure communication in the presence of adver ...

and the effects of technically ill-considered public policies. RISKS also publishes announcements and Calls for Papers from various technical conferences, and technical book reviews (usually by Rob Slade, though occasionally by others). Although RISKS is a forum of a

computer science Computer science is the study of computation, automation, and information. Computer science spans theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, information theory, and automation) to Applied science, practical discipli ...

association, most contributions are readable and informative to anyone with an interest in the subject. It is heavily read by

system administrator A system administrator, or sysadmin, or admin is a person who is responsible for the upkeep, configuration, and reliable operation of computer systems, especially multi-user computers, such as servers. The system administrator seeks to en ...

s, and

computer security Computer security, cybersecurity (cyber security), or information technology security (IT security) is the protection of computer systems and networks from attack by malicious actors that may result in unauthorized information disclosure, the ...

managers, as well as computer scientists and

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

s. The RISKS Digest is published on a frequent but irregular schedule through the moderated

Usenet Usenet () is a worldwide distributed discussion system available on computers. It was developed from the general-purpose Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP) dial-up network architecture. Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979, and it was ...

newsgroup A Usenet newsgroup is a repository usually within the Usenet system, for messages posted from users in different locations using the Internet. They are discussion groups and are not devoted to publishing news. Newsgroups are technically distinct ...

'' ews:comp.risks comp.risks', which exists solely to carry the Digest. Summaries of the forum appear as columns edited by Neumann in the ACM

SIGSOFT The Association for Computing Machinery's Special Interest Group on Software Engineering provides a forum for computing professionals from industry, government and academia to examine principles, practices, and new research results in software en ...

Software Engineering Notes The ACM SIGSOFT ''Software Engineering Notes'' (SEN) is published by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) for the ''Special Interest Group on Software Engineering'' (SIGSOFT). It was established in 1976, and the first issue appeared in M ...

'' (SEN) and the ''

Communications of the ACM ''Communications of the ACM'' is the monthly journal of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). It was established in 1958, with Saul Rosen as its first managing editor. It is sent to all ACM members. Articles are intended for readers with ...

'' (CACM).

References

External links

RISKS Digest web archive
* ews:///comp.risks RISKS Digest(Usenet newsgroup ''comp.risks'')
Google groups interface to ''comp.risks''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Risks Digest Risk Safety engineering Computer security procedures Magazines established in 1985 Association for Computing Machinery magazines Professional and trade magazines SRI International Engineering magazines Irregularly published magazines published in the United States 1985 establishments in the United States