On the 26th of December 2016, the date of my arrival to Montenegro, I was in anticipation for collecting my ‘Christmas box’. What happened next was about generating random string – paper Fast Moving Consumer Passwords, over the top media services and insight on Key to computer security.
May be being self-employed legal consultant can explain it a bit. This virtual ‘Christmas box’ contained access to internet services of my hosts in Montenegro, where I planned to work during my stay for the next two weeks. Should I use my mobile phone internet connection for internet, least to say voice, messaging plus roaming of my Ukrainian telecom – provider, it would be approaching the price of my air-ticket. Or round-trip one. You earn what you saved, is not it? All what I needed in a sea-side village without terrestrial internet was the WiFi password for free internet. So it was truly good bargain, but without brand dilution.
Randomly generated string paper passwords
After while, to my growing frustration, hosts could not recollect the password. Then the head of hosting family consulted his wallet and jacket, taking bits of different paper strings with hand-written passwords; he tried to recover the last version of password by telephone from local internet provider; afterwards he called offices of his adult working children (one of them is prosecutor); but everything was in vain. I already started making bets with myself about what comes next. As a dramatic last effort he lured some friend from local telecoms to drop-in, on the way driving home from work between adjacent cities.
FMCP (Fast Moving Consumer Password) of a household
Finally I witnessed spy-movie sort of scene from the balcony on the 3rd floor, as car approached my host in front of the building, driver opened the window, said something to my host… And…then my host shouted the password to me… Needless to say, building of my hosts is located on densely – populated village street. As easy to guess, plenitude of passwords appeared in response to prior access of entire village to Wi-Fi connection of my host. Why? Wife of the host confessed to me, that she was pity of nice tourists deprived of internet services in neighbourhood, so she routinely informed them the new password each time as her husband generated one.
OTT (over the top) media services
…all this activity with passwords was a little Over The Top for me. Besides, I felt an urgent need for more over-the-top… communication and streaming media services. Why not conventional telecoms media services? Due to cost and personal data security concerns. You see, there is no personal identification for entering Skype, WhatsApp, Viber, and Apple’s iMessage or another digital application, contrary to access to telecommunication services.
The Client is a King,
giving away passport data and deprived of convenient buying
Be prepared to give away your personal data (from passport ) when buying mobile phone services or internet from local telecoms operator. Under the Law on Electronic Communications of Montenegro operators must register subscribers of fixed, mobile, and internet services. When on my previous visit my hosts bought this card for me using their passport, they later phoned me to Ukraine and asked to return used card back to them in Montenegro.
This is the card mobile services I’ve bought from Montenegro operator. Luckily, I did not threw it away in the airport on my way home, and send it back by post into Montenegro. Needless to say, it was impossible to buy these cards in airports of Montenegro and Serbia so far. They just do not sell telecom services cards there.
Key to computer security
The third issue is computer security. As good friend of mine, IT professional, confessed, the key to security of his employer is in restricting acess of security guards to computer (not giving passwords), otherwise at day time they’ll play Sudoku, at night they’ll streamline pornography, in result security under risk, including risk of getting mal-ware in computers.
So those day, 26th of December 2016 everything went fine at the end, and it finished as truly Boxing Day. As after some work done I indulged myself in watching horse riding and box by internet. I thought It was true gesture, as in my opinion, the latter is exactly kind of video that security guards are to enjoy.
