Of bombs and bums at 11:02 AM

The Register is reporting about a recent suicide bomber attempt on a Saudi Prince where the would-be assassin apparently concealed an explosive device in his *ahem* rear-end, which he then detonated upon meeting the Prince, resulting in more mess than injury (to the Prince anyway!)

I can remember flying out of Sydney not long after the infamous 'Shoe bomber' had been caught trying to destroy an airliner mid-flight. This was not long after the September 11 attacks and the already heightened airport security in place went into a new gear with the revelation that the humble shoe could be a new weapon.

I was pulled aside while going through a security check and asked to remove my shoes, which were then prodded, poked and flexed by a stern looking security guard before they were returned. No real inconvenience.

After reading the Register's article, I did give out a sigh of relief that Richard Reid hadn't tried to blow up that plane with explosives hidden elsewhere, otherwise those airport security checks could be even more painful!

What does the above have to do with information security? Not much, aside from raising awareness of the lengths to which people will go to accomplish their goals. For insiders intent on stealing data, even the most stringent security checks that may include inspecting laptops, cameras, thumbdrives and ipods would more than likely fail to find storage hidden in a pen, sunglasses, jewelry or coins.