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RSA, being American company, cannot refuse NSA’s backdoors. Discovery of the backdoor hurt RSA’s business, so it’s understandable RSA has beef with them.
by trasz 5y ago
RSA, being American company, cannot refuse NSA’s backdoors. Discovery of the backdoor hurt RSA’s business, so it’s understandable RSA has beef with them.
- elmo2you 5y agoSince when can they not refuse a NSA backdoor? Where does the mandate come from, with which the NSA supposedly can instruct commercial/private entities to integrate technological back doors? Does it even have such a legal mandate. I'm sure the NSA will argue that they do, but that doesn't mean they actually have it.
- trasz 5y agoSome of the ways are already known: your company can be denied lucrative government contracts if you deny. Or you might learn you can't export your products due to export restrictions. Other ways are known to exist, but details are not available yet - go read about National Security Letters, or kangaroo "secret courts".
- HappySweeney 5y agoNot that I don't agree, but how do you know the secret courts are kangaroo?
- kook_throwaway 5y agoThe fact that it's secret. Also that you aren't even allowed to show up to defend yourself. [1] Also that they denied 11 out of 34,000 requests over a 35 year period. Also that the judges are appointed by one person and don't even need congressional approval. How could it possibly not be a kangaroo court? [1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ex_parte https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ex_parte
- Spooky23 5y agoCourts that aren’t adversarial are just interpreting law. Secrecy makes it worse by eliminating accountability by the petitioner and judge. For a non-secret example, look at the Social Security “fair hearings”, where an administrative law judge basically listens to a petition and makes a decision. The standards vary significantly by locale.
- bdamm 5y agoGovernment buyers that are less important (e.g. state level tollways) would be mandated to buy the backdoored algorithm by having the federal government cook it into a specification of how to buy tollway equipment, for example. Once the backdoored algorithm is in the product suite, it can be put to work on a more tactical level.
- rdtsc 5y ago> RSA, being American company, cannot refuse NSA’s backdoors. The key is selling to American government, and any entity related to it. But no, they can't mandate RSA build anything. Of course, if they refuse, they'll find another company which would, pay them lots of money, and then issue a certification requirement that only this particular backdoor algorithm is "approved" and then wait for RSA to go out of business.
- er4hn 5y agoThis wasn't added via a secret order however. RSA had a business agreement with the NSA to add the backdoor. RSA was paid $10 Million for this.