@AmICrazy
Am I crazy for thinking no-printed-statements is a really colossally bad idea?
Yes. Security is a process, not a product. There's nothing magical about paper. There is nothing particularly timely about auditing monthly statements.
I keep thinking a banking trojan could sit between me and my bank, as malware on my computer or even merely somewhere on the network.
That has nothing to do with printed statements. What you really are seeking is an independent audit trail, to whatever extent you can define "independent". You could always just use a separate, more hardened device on a different network to check the account. You could probably verify the balance at any ATM, or stop in at a local branch and ask a teller. It's possible you can set up a way to get push notifications when there is account activity. To the paranoid, all those channels could also be compromised, but you really have to think about the odds of that happening compared to whatever liability you face as a consequence of that kind of grand conspiracy.
that malware can redirect my money overseas while making it appear to still be there right down to the interest
That's a pretty sophisticated spoof. Is there any evidence that such a thing has happened to anyone? What reason do you have to believe that your financial accounts are so absolutely special that you'll be one of the first targets of that kind of operation?
Meanwhile the bank requires me to report theft within 30 days, theft I have no way of detecting...
If such an extraordinary thing ever did happen, no bank that wants to survive would ever think of trying to blame their customers for it, and you'd almost certainly win if they tried and you sued them for it. It's not the kind of thing that would take years to figure out, either. Realize that the security of financial transactions are taken more seriously than the security of electronic voting. That doesn't mean it's 100% error-free, but you have not proposed any realistic flaw in the process that could result in the fantastical scenario you describe.
@Stephen Welch
It's straightway forward doing the build but what can we do to make it a functional – exciting pull.
Um, maybe stop lying to the kids. If you don't actually have a compelling use for the technology, don't pretend you do. Don't pretend you have a use for their skills if you don't. As a software developer, one of the most insulting recent movements I've seen is the "Everybody Can Code" bandwagon. It's not only dismissive of those of us who have decades of experience in the field, it harms the self-esteem of kids it targets who aren't particularly skilled in that one narrow aspect of STEM learning.
Would welcome any thoughts or ideas from the Schneierites 😊
Figure out what the kids actually are interested in. If there's a legitimate intersection with the kinds of things you are doing with technology, great. If not, hook them up with someone who can actually help with their future development. The last thing they need is yet another adult who just ends up letting them down.
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