This is at least some precedent to this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crypto_AG http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crypto_AG Don't discount the (admittedly unlikely

This is at least some precedent to this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crypto_AG http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crypto_AG Don't discount the (admittedly unlikely) possibility that there was some cooperation in making sure that any /possible/ backdoors were done by people with REAL knowledge of how to get it done. I'm still not convinced that the original Pentium Floating Point Bug wasn't a (mishandled) intentional corruption for crypto-backdoor purposes. Anyone who has heard the rumors about the POPCNT instruction would understand that the government is capable of making all sorts of deals with equipment and software vendors. Very few companies will decline such requests when received with "critical to National Security" assurances.