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I'm guessing he's never heard of the pidgin OTR plugin which puts encryption keys back in the hands of even the least technical.
by merpnderp 11y ago
I'm guessing he's never heard of the pidgin OTR plugin which puts encryption keys back in the hands of even the least technical.
- pdkl95 11y agoThere is a tendency - especially among highly-technical crowds like HN - to assume ignorance or stupidity whenever a topic like this comes up. This is dangerous. Hanlon's Razor is a good heuristic when all else is equal, which is absolutely not the case with these attacks against encryption. All else is not equal. James Comey has been attacking crypto since the first crypto wars 15+ years ago. There is no way he is ignorant of how crypto works or how easily available it is. His rhetoric is an attack on the power that Silicon Valley has been acquiring, and tech companies better start treating as an attack. This latest push is trying to paint tech companies as "being unreasonable" in the public eye, so legislation can be pushed outlawing encryption wherever it is inconvenient (finance can always have an exception carved out). It need not be effective - it's just another tool that can be selectively enforced. So where are the "full-page ads" and other media blitz form tech companies countering these attacks? Where are the counterattacks accusing Comey of trying to undermine American Businesses Interests? Well, far too many of those businesses use surveillance as a business model, and actual security would undermine their interests as well. I hope they like the future they are creating. For everybody else, the time to start fighting against these political attacks was "yesterday". Better late than never?
- merpnderp 11y agoWish I could upvote your response twice.