> Edit: perhaps research and training in security and seeing how I can contribute on that front is the first step back towards being proud of my work...?

Well. The open-source tools might be as easy as the professional tools to taint.

Someone training for the CCNA/P-Security or any other certifications is still using the same corrupted conduits :(

William Gibson said this about virtual lights (a novel which deals with bike messengers and data): "In the future, information'll be more secure when written on paper and transported by physical human hands than on the wired."

Which reminds me of this: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8248056.stm http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-11325452

And there is work to do : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_over_Avian_Carriers