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The bad guys will find out first. Back when I first heard that, the bad guys were bored and/or hyperactive teenagers who understood how computers work. Today w
by lewiscollard 7y ago
The bad guys will find out first.
Back when I first heard that, the bad guys were bored and/or hyperactive teenagers who understood how computers work. Today we are talking nation-state actors and nation-state-sponsored actors with practically unlimited resources.
Keeping your code secret will not stop them, cf. WhatsApp. "Responsible disclosure" will not stop them either, and sets up all the wrong kinds of incentives for vendors to sit on problems until just before the "responsible" disclosure window closes. And FFS, there are still grown adults that believe building backdoors into E2E won't be exploited by the bad guys first, insofar as they are not the bad guys themselves.
I only have questions, not answers, and I don't know what we do from here.
- nullandvoid 7y agoWe have to make this knowledge of closed source systems not being safe more wide spread more approachable to the lamen. It will take time but generations are slowly waking up to the bullshit. We need to be able to run open source code on servers in a transparent and reportable way that everyone can understand I see services like whatsapp taking the stance it is essential. Its the only place I (barely) feel like I can speak my mind when chatting with non tech savvy friends (of which it would be a hard sell to get to install anything else more rock solid). I really hope we can adopt widespread e2e encrypted chat platforms moving forward and dont regress in this front else it will be a sad future