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So djb writes crypto code that works and everybody switches to it but it isn't because his stuff is any good? Through the entire article he doesn't list anythi
by cweimann 10y ago
So djb writes crypto code that works and everybody switches to it but it isn't because his stuff is any good? Through the entire article he doesn't list anything wrong with the djb crypto stuff and ends up calling it 'brakish' and 'camel dung'? Really? It isn't because djb stuff is good, it is because everything else is crap? WTF?
- __jal 10y agoGutmann writes a bit colloquially, and the text was a message on a somewhat informal mailing list. So keep that in mind regarding the tone. The overall point of the post was not to blast DJB, but, well, to point out the crypto monoculture, like it says on the tin. DJB's stuff is good, which is why it is popular. The problem Gutmann is highlighting (mostly) is that nobody's competing with him. That problem? Monocultures are high-risk. A bug or a cryptanalysis breakthrough could render "everybody's" security broken at the same time. Or, DJB is eaten by a bear; who supports that code now?
- tptacek 10y agoIf DJB is eaten by a bear I think we'll manage to use Ed25519 and Chapoly just fine Moreover, you can't cryptanalyze Daniel Bernstein himself to break Curve25519 or Chapoly, so he's not a single point of failure. :)
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]