Unlike others, I think terrible crypto is often better than plaintext. But they would have gotten an actually secure system implemented more cheaply with less

Unlike others, I think terrible crypto is often better than plaintext. But they would have gotten an actually secure system implemented more cheaply with less code by just copying some example code from libsodium[1]. The author(s) went to a whole lot of unnecessary effort and the result is an insecure, embarrassing mess. I would respect the argument of "oh, they're just picking a different point along the Pareto frontier between secure / high effort and insecure / low effort". But this is both insecure and high effort. People are piling on because it has the trademark smell of bad judgement. Its also a great learning opportunity. Its interesting hearing about all the security problems people who are knowledgeable in the field can spot! I noticed barely any of these problems! [1] Quick Reference, from the bottom of the article: https://paragonie.com/blog/2017/06/libsodium-quick-reference-quick-comparison-similar-functions-and-which-one-use https://paragonie.com/blog/2017/06/libsodium-quick-reference...