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> Mainstream users could use such things so long as the UX was really, really good. I'm not so sure. In my experience with encrypted chat apps with non-technic

by exDM69 10y ago

> Mainstream users could use such things so long as the UX was really, really good. I'm not so sure. In my experience with encrypted chat apps with non-technical people, they completely ignore any kind of security in the key exchange. They'll give you their account number to get in touch but nothing to verify the key. I don't see this changing in the near future or at all if fundamentals of public key systems aren't going to be a part of school curricula. I'm a bit sad that it's so poorly understood as public key cryptography has really changed the world in the past few decades (can you imagine going back to a world without online banking?). The key insight to understand is that cryptography can't establish trust, only maintain it.

rl3 10y ago
Exceptional UX assumes adequate education as part of the experience, if not completely obviating the need for it in the first place by creating a foolproof system that holds the user's hand every step of the way.
TheOtherHobbes 10y ago
Those users see an extra layer of friction for no obvious benefit. "Trust" is not an issue for them, because they've never experienced someone impersonating someone else. The reason the web is broken is because it's a meeting point for the social, commercial, corporate, personal, academic, and political worlds. All of those worlds have different demands and requirements. You can't fix a political problem by applying technology to it. There's a persistent myth that you can, but the reality is that publicly accessible technology mirrors the publicly accessible political environment, not vice versa. Politically, neither ordinary users nor academic experts have the leverage to enforce the kind of secure, safe, trustworthy web most of us here would want. Banks, corporations, governments, and the letter agencies do, which is why they have an effective monopoly on the practical applications of key security. A minority of geeks and security specialists get some crumbs from the key exchange table, but they're a long way from being able to force strong security into the popular web.

by exDM69 10y ago

rl3 10y ago

Exceptional UX assumes adequate education as part of the experience, if not completely obviating the need for it in the first place by creating a foolproof system that holds the user's hand every step of the way.

TheOtherHobbes 10y ago

Those users see an extra layer of friction for no obvious benefit. "Trust" is not an issue for them, because they've never experienced someone impersonating someone else. The reason the web is broken is because it's a meeting point for the social, commercial, corporate, personal, academic, and political worlds. All of those worlds have different demands and requirements. You can't fix a political problem by applying technology to it. There's a persistent myth that you can, but the reality is that publicly accessible technology mirrors the publicly accessible political environment, not vice versa. Politically, neither ordinary users nor academic experts have the leverage to enforce the kind of secure, safe, trustworthy web most of us here would want. Banks, corporations, governments, and the letter agencies do, which is why they have an effective monopoly on the practical applications of key security. A minority of geeks and security specialists get some crumbs from the key exchange table, but they're a long way from being able to force strong security into the popular web.