From: rishab@dxm.ernet.in
Date: Wed, 16 Feb 94 16:40:28 PST
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Security through obscurity?
Message-ID: <gate.HJNVHc1w165w@dxm.ernet.in>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----


qwerty@netcom.com (Xenon) writes:

>
> There's a paradigm-shift needed here. When it clicks into place in one's
> mind, you will see why I am so adamant about Stealth-PGP, for rather than
> being a back-burner project, it is THE very thing that is most important
> for the defeat of Big Brother's Clipper chip and his wiretap proposals. It
> REALLY IS a "Stealth" technology. I'm sure there are already thousands in
> repressive countries who need it NOW, and if you don't call the USA a
> repressive country as well, I've got a burning Constitution and Bill of
> Rights for you burn your hands on.
>

Not everybody thinks India is a free country, but it is, more or less. The
interesting thing about "needing Stealth PGP" is that you need it more in
"free" USA, where Big Brother has the technology and political will to watch
and blacklist you, as well as the political will of Bobby Ray's ilk. Most
repressive countries are, on the other hand, not well equipped with hi-tech
surveillance.

In India, where I can telnet from at practically no cost due to a fairly
up to date net, official policy for this "Educational" net states
that mail, not supposed to be private, may be randomly inspected.

However, I can send just about anything I want to and from anywhere (such as
PGP, Phrack, and any sedition I might want to export), because *NOBODY WILL
BOTHER* to inspect anything. And government security agencies who may have the
technology to snoop couldn't be bothered with electronic traffic. In any case,
if I was to hack for state secrets, presumably I'd find NSA archives more
interesting than their local equivalant.

The point is that nobody here will notice what encryption I use, and far from
outlawing it, hardly anyone is aware of it. (I'm one the only person from
India, and one of four from all Asia, to subscribe to this list. Pretty well
hidden in the noise ;-)

Just as in India, I'm not suspect if I encrypt a message, Xenon hopes that the
NSA won't mind if *IT DOESN'T KNOW* that you've encrypted something. But the
threshold of suspicion will change: with increasing use of Stealth-PGP, *ANY
TRANSMISSION* of noise will be cause for honorary membership to the NSA
watchlist. Of course, they may find it harder to prove that you did encrypt
anything; but now they can't prove that you encrypted something criminal, as
decryption is pretty hard. But they don't believe much in proof, do they?

Rishab

- -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Rishab Aiyer Ghosh                            "What is civilisation
rishab@doe.ernet.in, rishab@dxm.ernet.in        but a ribonucleic
Voicemail +91 11 3760335; Vox/Fax/Data 6853410      hangover?"
H-34C Saket New Delhi 110017 INDIA
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Version: 2.3a

iQCVAgUBLWJ5Lvw/vM8w8hLZAQESnwP+L9nuYtkRXQap5Ucr9dUWOfAFhQQeJO2S
d5tHWkRbBEf8panzPO/W/5X/2BBPCoaoNEkqLpX11RHCVKBd8rrx4xaX5UJL9iTk
49s8c2jLEC2ZqJLneJd6DchZaNRwV9u4ns3M+55m7o3sYYZ0wdE9AgfpID9BGpfn
r5cA7N+RXNg=
=950h
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----