From: "Vladimir Z. Nuri" <vznuri@netcom.com>
Date: Sun, 18 Aug 1996 15:43:44 +0800
To: tcmay@got.net (Timothy C. May)
Subject: Re: BlackNet as a Distributed, Untraceable, Robust Data Haven
In-Reply-To: <ae3939990d0210040b0a@[205.199.118.202]>
Message-ID: <199608180540.WAA16219@netcom14.netcom.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



>I have to speak up here and say that there is an actual working exemplar of
>a distributed, untraceable data haven. While it lacks a robust _payment_
>mechanism, that is also untraceable, so does the "Visit Port Watson"
>example (which has never actually existed).

agree with Jim Bell that blacknet by any stretch of the imagination
is not a "data haven". it is a service for selling/buying secrets.
I'm quite surprised to see you misuse a term that I thought you
had largely invented/promolgated ("data haven"). as far as I understand
it, a "data haven" would function something like a remote disk drive.
blacknet did not claim to have anything to do with storing data
reliably like a drive does.

the idea of highlighting the fact that Blacknet was possible however
was something you certainly deserve all the notorious credit for <g>

others deserve the notorious credit for describing how a blacknet-like
scheme could be foiled or at least made difficult through the 
use of widespread decoys. <g> (and yet others deserve credit
for breaking the key to that <g>)

do you consider "decoys" "man in the middle attacks" as you wrote
in your essay, or are you conveniently ignoring this devastating issue
that was brought to your attention long ago?

one of your repeated claims is that a reputation service would help
identify the decoys, but I would like to see this happen in practice
before I believe it. remember that reputation services themselves
could be subject to infiltration and falsification. it becomes
a "who will give reputations on the people who give reputations"
infinite regress problem imho.

also, I always liked the way that you tied in Blacknet to 
anonymous assassinations. or maybe that was just part of my 
imagination. anyway I'm surprised that you haven't collaborated
with Jim Bell more who shares some of your ideas on the subject.

I certainly give you huge credit for discovering/elucidating
some of the more twisted uses of cyberspace long before they are actual
operating enterprises. <g>