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If the US Government succeeds in requiring a backdoor then so will every other government. Does anyone really think China won’t immediately demand backdoors?

mattnewton 7y ago
I thought they already did, but in the layers they control, like Chinese apps and telecoms.
- smacktoward 7y ago
  So, not that different from AT&T's infamous Room 641A (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A).
  - mattnewton 7y ago
    Right, just with more people onboard and also owning the apps in user space.
inflatableDodo 7y ago
Not just governments, but various mafias, several corporates, random masonic offshoots, and the occaisional creative individual presumably have backdoors into all sorts of stuff. This isn't about creating backdoors, this is about being allowed to use them within the public legal framework.
mtgx 7y ago
China already does require backdoors of both local Chinese firms and foreign firms with HQs in China, although the requirement may not be "technically official" (it can certainly be interpreted that way from their 2017 law, though). I think it's disgusting how supposed "democracies" have been trying to emulate China, both in terms of surveillance and censorship. UK is one of the worst offenders here -- sometimes they didn't even hide the fact they were using China as a role model. There used to be a time when the U.S. government and other countries would condemn China for this sort of stuff.
lukifer 7y ago
It's even a problem with allies as well as adversaries; countries can potentially get around their own legal limitations by agreeing to spy on one another, and where needed to build a case, covering their tracks via parallel construction. Whether officially or unofficially, any backdoor keys would leak almost immediately. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Eyes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Eyes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_construction https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_construction
outworlder 7y ago
It's worse. They will use the exact same backdoors.
JudgeWapner 7y ago
I think you have it backwards: $OPPRESSIVE_REGIME is already doing it, but Land of the "Free" somehow needs it, because terrorism.

mattnewton 7y ago

I thought they already did, but in the layers they control, like Chinese apps and telecoms.

smacktoward 7y ago
So, not that different from AT&T's infamous Room 641A (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A).
- mattnewton 7y ago
  Right, just with more people onboard and also owning the apps in user space.

inflatableDodo 7y ago

Not just governments, but various mafias, several corporates, random masonic offshoots, and the occaisional creative individual presumably have backdoors into all sorts of stuff. This isn't about creating backdoors, this is about being allowed to use them within the public legal framework.

mtgx 7y ago

China already does require backdoors of both local Chinese firms and foreign firms with HQs in China, although the requirement may not be "technically official" (it can certainly be interpreted that way from their 2017 law, though). I think it's disgusting how supposed "democracies" have been trying to emulate China, both in terms of surveillance and censorship. UK is one of the worst offenders here -- sometimes they didn't even hide the fact they were using China as a role model. There used to be a time when the U.S. government and other countries would condemn China for this sort of stuff.

lukifer 7y ago

It's even a problem with allies as well as adversaries; countries can potentially get around their own legal limitations by agreeing to spy on one another, and where needed to build a case, covering their tracks via parallel construction. Whether officially or unofficially, any backdoor keys would leak almost immediately. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Eyes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Eyes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_construction https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_construction

outworlder 7y ago

It's worse. They will use the exact same backdoors.

JudgeWapner 7y ago

I think you have it backwards: $OPPRESSIVE_REGIME is already doing it, but Land of the "Free" somehow needs it, because terrorism.