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This was showcased during the last episode of the John Oliver show https://youtu.be/zsjZ2r9Ygzw?t=522 https://youtu.be/zsjZ2r9Ygzw?t=522. Here's what happened :

This was showcased during the last episode of the John Oliver show https://youtu.be/zsjZ2r9Ygzw?t=522 https://youtu.be/zsjZ2r9Ygzw?t=522. Here's what happened : http://www.nytimes.com/1994/06/12/magazine/battle-of-the-clipper-chip.html?pagewanted=all http://www.nytimes.com/1994/06/12/magazine/battle-of-the-cli...

JetSpiegel 11y ago
That was a great article, thanks for sharing. This snippet puts things in perspective: The agency is really worried about its screens going blank" due to unbreakable encryption, says Lance J. Hoffman, a professor of computer science at George Washington University. "When that happens, the N.S.A. -- said to be the largest employer in Maryland -- goes belly-up. A way to prevent this is to expand its mission and to become, effectively, the one-stop shop for encryption for Government and those that do business with the Government."
- EthanHeilman 11y ago
  > "When that happens, the N.S.A. -- said to be the largest employer in Maryland -- goes belly-up. A way to prevent this is to expand its mission The article is from 1994 and I believe my reaction is as true then as now. Why can't NSA just switch to doing 90% information-assurance and work to secure US infrastructure? Certainly there is more than enough work to go around, if they are looking for something to do I have some suggestions. The US military isn't really known for having secure communications or storage systems, maybe NSA should try to solve that problem (as a plus it is already part of their mission). Is the claim here that NSA's budget would shrink if all they were doing was securing US systems and communications against foreign intelligence agencies? Does Congress consider that task unimportant?
  - studentrob 11y ago
    I'm pretty sure they're focused on stopping terrorist attacks like 9/11 from happening. Note that the NSA is not asking for Apple to give them a special key to the iPhone. The FBI is asking for it. Note that a former NSA director (Hayden) and CIA director (Woolsey) have said they both support Apple in this case.
    - EthanHeilman 11y ago
      I'm reacting to a statement from 1994 in which it was claimed that the NSA wanted to expand its mission to ensure it could still employ the same number of people. >I'm pretty sure they're focused on stopping terrorist attacks like 9/11 from happening. That was not NSA's original mission and if congressional testimony is to be believed, not one NSA is particularly well suited to do. SIGINT/COMINT targeting the organs of the Soviet Union is a very different game than interrupting a terrorist plot by a small number of unknown actors. >Note that a former NSA director (Hayden) and CIA director (Woolsey) have said they both support Apple in this case. The FBI's position is so unreasonable that it appears nearly everyone that is well informed about the issue and isn't currently employed by the US government supports Apple, but we are talking about the Clipper Chip which was an NSA program.
- studentrob 11y ago
  Note that currently, the NSA is not asking for this privilege, and indeed two former intelligence directors (Hayden-NSA/CIA and Woolsey-CIA) and former CIA agent / current US representative Will Hurd all believe the DOJ is in the wrong to try to force Apple to build them an access tool. I know you're quoting the 1994 situation but I just want to clarify for other readers here.

JetSpiegel 11y ago

That was a great article, thanks for sharing. This snippet puts things in perspective: The agency is really worried about its screens going blank" due to unbreakable encryption, says Lance J. Hoffman, a professor of computer science at George Washington University. "When that happens, the N.S.A. -- said to be the largest employer in Maryland -- goes belly-up. A way to prevent this is to expand its mission and to become, effectively, the one-stop shop for encryption for Government and those that do business with the Government."

EthanHeilman 11y ago
> "When that happens, the N.S.A. -- said to be the largest employer in Maryland -- goes belly-up. A way to prevent this is to expand its mission The article is from 1994 and I believe my reaction is as true then as now. Why can't NSA just switch to doing 90% information-assurance and work to secure US infrastructure? Certainly there is more than enough work to go around, if they are looking for something to do I have some suggestions. The US military isn't really known for having secure communications or storage systems, maybe NSA should try to solve that problem (as a plus it is already part of their mission). Is the claim here that NSA's budget would shrink if all they were doing was securing US systems and communications against foreign intelligence agencies? Does Congress consider that task unimportant?
- studentrob 11y ago
  I'm pretty sure they're focused on stopping terrorist attacks like 9/11 from happening. Note that the NSA is not asking for Apple to give them a special key to the iPhone. The FBI is asking for it. Note that a former NSA director (Hayden) and CIA director (Woolsey) have said they both support Apple in this case.
  - EthanHeilman 11y ago
    I'm reacting to a statement from 1994 in which it was claimed that the NSA wanted to expand its mission to ensure it could still employ the same number of people. >I'm pretty sure they're focused on stopping terrorist attacks like 9/11 from happening. That was not NSA's original mission and if congressional testimony is to be believed, not one NSA is particularly well suited to do. SIGINT/COMINT targeting the organs of the Soviet Union is a very different game than interrupting a terrorist plot by a small number of unknown actors. >Note that a former NSA director (Hayden) and CIA director (Woolsey) have said they both support Apple in this case. The FBI's position is so unreasonable that it appears nearly everyone that is well informed about the issue and isn't currently employed by the US government supports Apple, but we are talking about the Clipper Chip which was an NSA program.
studentrob 11y ago
Note that currently, the NSA is not asking for this privilege, and indeed two former intelligence directors (Hayden-NSA/CIA and Woolsey-CIA) and former CIA agent / current US representative Will Hurd all believe the DOJ is in the wrong to try to force Apple to build them an access tool. I know you're quoting the 1994 situation but I just want to clarify for other readers here.