Chatting in Confidence

Asking college students to cut back on using instant-messaging programs would be like asking them to stop breathing. But persuading them to use the software a bit more safely might not be so hard to do, officials at Duke University hope.

The university has unveiled a new server devoted entirely to making Instant Messenger and its ilk more secure. The server uses a security protocol called Jabber to encrypt students’ chat sessions—making it much more difficult for outsiders to intercept personal information relayed in the conversations. (The [Duke U.] Chronicle )