From: "Deranged Mutant" <WlkngOwl@unix.asb.com>
Date: Sat, 16 Mar 1996 02:27:29 +0800
To: jim bell <jimbell@pacifier.com>
Subject: Re: Why escrow? (was Re: How would Leahy bill affect crypto
Message-ID: <199603151658.LAA06153@unix.asb.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


On 14 Mar 96 at 19:41, jim bell wrote:


> >Of course that depends how you give your key to an escrow agent. If 
> >it's already escrowed when you buy a phone, for instance...
> 
> That's the real danger with any such legislation.  Individuals can generally 
> only get things that are manufactured for sale.  (You can't buy a car with a 
> 7-cylinder engine, for instance...)  If manufacturers are dissuaded from 
> building a good crypto telephone, then key-escrow can be as "voluntary" as 
> you want and you still won't be able to exercise your rights. 

You might sill be able to buy an unescrowed crypto-phone. If forgeign 
companies start selling them, then the gov't will have a hard time 
preventing domestic companies from manufacturing them and exporting 
them (in theory...) under the legislation.

Rob. 

---
Send a blank message with the subject "send pgp-key" (not in
quotes) to <WlkngOwl@unix.asb.com> for a copy of my PGP key.