4 ms·

Robbing a bank is immoral, selling information about how a piece of software works, in my humble opinion, is not. Or if it is, then it's not even close to the l

Robbing a bank is immoral, selling information about how a piece of software works, in my humble opinion, is not. Or if it is, then it's not even close to the level of "wrong" that is robbing a bank.

mrtesthah 5y ago
And what if that information gets weaponized against journalists in an authoritarian regime?
- ClumsyPilot 5y ago
  You know what gets weaponised? Actual weapons our government sold to Saudi and other's.
  - true_religion 5y ago
    Also the software to subvert security on mobile devices, build firewalls on a national level, and inspect every internet packet for disloyal statements. All that is packaged and sold to our authoritarian allies with the full approval of the government the majority of people support. Selling a zero day would probably fall under a weapons clause.
  - mrtesthah 5y ago
    One of these things doesn't negate or excuse the other; both can happen at the same time. You're engaging in "whataboutism".
    - ClumsyPilot 5y ago
      If you sell a knife, and it's used for a stabbing, are you culpable? Thousands of people buy knives every day, and most of them don't stab anyone. So unless there was good reason to suspect something, we would say no. Most zerodays are probably not bought by china to spy on dissidents, they are more like knives. On the contrary, when we sell bombs to Saudis we can be 95% sure they will be used in Yemen.
      - saagarjha 5y ago
        What exactly do you do with a zero day that isn't "use it against someone"?
      - mrtesthah 5y ago
        Zero-days, unlike knives, are not dual-use instruments. The only people buying those zero-days are incorporating them into surveillance and monitoring systems. Literally, how else could an exploit be monetized? Stealing crypto-wallets?
    - jessaustin 5y ago
      Important information about "whataboutism": https://theoutline.com/post/8610/united-states-russia-whataboutism-cold-war-trump https://theoutline.com/post/8610/united-states-russia-whatab...

Robbing a bank is immoral, selling information about how a piece of software works, in my humble opinion, is not. Or if it is, then it's not even close to the level of "wrong" that is robbing a bank.

mrtesthah 5y ago

And what if that information gets weaponized against journalists in an authoritarian regime?

ClumsyPilot 5y ago
You know what gets weaponised? Actual weapons our government sold to Saudi and other's.
- true_religion 5y ago
  Also the software to subvert security on mobile devices, build firewalls on a national level, and inspect every internet packet for disloyal statements. All that is packaged and sold to our authoritarian allies with the full approval of the government the majority of people support. Selling a zero day would probably fall under a weapons clause.
- mrtesthah 5y ago
  One of these things doesn't negate or excuse the other; both can happen at the same time. You're engaging in "whataboutism".
  - ClumsyPilot 5y ago
    If you sell a knife, and it's used for a stabbing, are you culpable? Thousands of people buy knives every day, and most of them don't stab anyone. So unless there was good reason to suspect something, we would say no. Most zerodays are probably not bought by china to spy on dissidents, they are more like knives. On the contrary, when we sell bombs to Saudis we can be 95% sure they will be used in Yemen.
    - saagarjha 5y ago
      What exactly do you do with a zero day that isn't "use it against someone"?
    - mrtesthah 5y ago
      Zero-days, unlike knives, are not dual-use instruments. The only people buying those zero-days are incorporating them into surveillance and monitoring systems. Literally, how else could an exploit be monetized? Stealing crypto-wallets?
  - jessaustin 5y ago
    Important information about "whataboutism": https://theoutline.com/post/8610/united-states-russia-whataboutism-cold-war-trump https://theoutline.com/post/8610/united-states-russia-whatab...