A insegurança do computador e a vulnerabilidade social

COLABORAÇÃO INTERNACIONAL

A insegurança do computador e a vulnerabilidade social^*

Tom Forester^I; Perry Morrison^II

^IProfessor da Griffith University, Austrália

^IIProfessor da University of New England, Austrália

RESUMO

Muitos têm argumentado que as sociedades industriais estão se tornando cada vez mais dependentes da tecnologia e, conseqüentemente, mais vulneráveis às falhas tecnológicas. Não obstante a difusão da tecnologia computacional, pouco é conhecido a respeito das falhas do computador, exceto, talvez, as que são muito comuns. Este artigo analisa as fontes de insegurança do computador e revê a extensão e o custo dos computadores inconfiáveis. Ao contrário dos articulistas anteriores, os autores argumentam que os computadores digitais são inerentemente não confiáveis por duas razões: primeira, são mais propensos a falhas totais, ao invés de parciais; e segunda, sua enorme complexidade significa que jamais poderão ser completamente testados antes de serem colocados em uso. Os autores descrevem em seguida várias tentativas institucionais para melhorar a confiabilidade, bem como possíveis soluções propostas pelos cientistas da computação, mas concluem que até agora nenhuma foi adequada. Em conseqüência, recomendam que os computadores não devam ser utilizados em aplicações onde haja risco de vida.

Palavras-chave: Confiabilidade do computador, falhas do computador, riscos sociais do computador, engenharia de software.

ABSTRACT

Many have argued that industrial societies are becoming more technology-dependent and are thus more vulnerable to technology failures. Despite the pervasiveness of computer technology, little is known about computer failures, except perhaps that they are all too common. This article analyses the sources of computer unreliability and reviews the extent and cost of unreliable computers. Unlike previous writers, the authors argue that digital computers are inherently unreliable for two reasons: first, they are prone to total rather than partial failure; and second, their enormous complexity means that they can never be thoroughly tested before use. The authors then describe various institutional attempts to improve reliability and possible solutions proposed by computer scientists, but they conclude that as yet none is adequate. Accordingly, they recommend that computers should not be used in life-critical applications.

Key words: Computer reliability, computer failures, computer-social risks, software engineering.

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*

Texto publicado originalmente na

Futures Journal in England, 22(5):462-74/ junho de 1990, sob o titulo "Computer unreliability and social vulnerability".

Datas de Publicação

• Publicação nesta coleção
  14 Jun 2013
• Data do Fascículo
  Dez 1991