From: solman@MIT.EDU
Date: Fri, 22 Jul 94 18:02:52 PDT
To: mpjohnso@nyx10.cs.du.edu (Michael Johnson)
Subject: Re: Gore's "new and improved" key escrow proposal
In-Reply-To: <9407222348.AA18125@nyx10.cs.du.edu>
Message-ID: <9407230102.AA17231@ua.MIT.EDU>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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> Just think how easy it would be to comply with software key escrow
> requirements: imagine a new PGP option -- +encrypt_to_escrow_agents=on

I think that this is an exceellent idea, not one to be laughed at. Voluntary
compliance is a good thing. Something I'm toying with is the possibility of
putting a voluntary tax in my program. 1% of all transactions would go to
paying for educational access and access for poor people. If you don't want
to contribute, just turn it off. As long as either the vendor or the customer
has the option on, 1% will find its way to those groups. Vendors and
customers would even be able to charge groups that do not participate extra
as a penalty for not being socially conscious. Government intervention with
guns is not necessary for warm fuzzy things to occur.

Voluntarilly participating in things like escrow and "warm fuzzy liberal
taxes" has the potential to take the bite out of legilation intended to
regulate us. (And remember, another name for secret-split key escrow is
KEY BACKUP, a very important function in any cryptographic system that's
intended to last and be reasonably universal.)

Cheers,

JWS