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Something I am not sure about as a layman: What is the likelihood that the documents Signal are allowed to publish, concerning subpoenas, are an accurate accoun
by ysnp 5y ago
Something I am not sure about as a layman: What is the likelihood that the documents Signal are allowed to publish, concerning subpoenas, are an accurate account of all the information they can provide? Could Homeland Security/FBI compel them to lie in the evidence they have produced?
In [1], Signal mention that traffic correlation via timing attacks and IP addresses are a work-in-progress as far as their metadata protection goes. They also claim that they do not store IP addresses, or at least they are not set up to do so. I guess they can be forced to record some of these, if need be.
I am not deeply concerned about the metadata Signal could possibly collect if compelled to (although it is unclear what exactly they can collect) because it is likely best-in-class among encrypted messengers anyway. I suppose it is likely that even if Signal were forced to lie or undergo a gag, the chance of whistle-blowing would be much higher given that they are a donations based nonprofit that probably employ more young-ish people with strong principles, as opposed to employees who need a stable job and have families to look after.
[1] https://signal.org/blog/sealed-sender/ https://signal.org/blog/sealed-sender/
- thecrash 5y agoMy rough understanding is that in the US the State can compel silence but not compel speech. Warrant canaries take this reasoning to an untested extreme, but it seems safe to assume that ordering Signal to tell elaborate lies about its subpoena responses would not fly in court.