We need more than a new Internet
It's nice to see the New York Times write on the topic of Internet security, and actually focusing on a more radical solution than normal. The article basically says, Internet security is so broken that we need to start over with a "new Internet." Sounds like fun, but that seriously misses the point.
If we are going to go down the path of starting over, why not go right to the root of the problem, and fix our hardware? Now that we know what kinds of vulnerabilities exist in our existing designs (based on the von Neumann architecture), we could create a new hardware platform that has security and privacy protections built in. This would naturally lead to a new kind of software, which could take advantage of the new hardware features and architectural decisions, to keep itself secure. Since the Internet is just a collection of networking hardware and software, it would obviously also benefit.
In fact, by rethinking the very basic underpinnings of computer design, we can propagate the results throughout the entire CPU-based world, not just the Internet. Trying to fix only one part of the problem, such as by creating "a 'gated community' where users would give up their anonymity and certain freedoms in return for safety" would be a disaster. Not only would it quickly be broken and misused, like every other attempt to do something similar, but it would eliminate one of the best features of the Internet that caused it to thrive in the first place.
Sadly, I doubt we will ever be able to "start over" on something like this (IPv6, anyone?). I mean, there are so many aspects of life that could use the benefit of hindsight and a redesign, like politics, tax law, health care... but they are too entrenched in society to be replaced by better systems. That makes for good job security for those of us in the computer security field, as long as we can put up with the feeling of continuous frustration, knowing that a true alternative is possible, but we are essentially powerless to pursue it.
