From: Harry Shapiro <habs@Panix.Com>
Date: Sat, 17 Apr 93 06:40:08 PDT
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Big Brother: Easy to Break
Message-ID: <199304171339.AA04237@sun.Panix.Com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


I recall having a conversation at the Boston ExI meeting, talking
about super computers and how fast they could break small keys
(like 80  bits).

I think it was carlf, and I don't recall the exact estimate given,
it I think it was on the order of several hours to several days for
a fast connection machine class super computer to break such a key
by brute force.

The NSA certainly has plenty of fast machines, and I assume they will
be able to break any clipper based encryption routinely.

Certainly as 64-bit, high speed multiprocessors come on line in the
next few years it will be easier and easier for even us plain folks
to break such keys (although I sure not a simple task).

With NSA having the algorithim and access to perhaps at least half
the key or perhaps some little bit of "known text" that clippper puts
into each message to make it easier to do a known text attack on
someone's clipper encoded message, we can assume that the escrowed
keys are at best a ruse...

-- 
Harry Shapiro  				      habs@panix.com
List Administrator of the Extropy Institute Mailing List
Private Communication for the Extropian Community since 1991