From: geeman@best.com
Date: Thu, 18 Sep 1997 12:33:09 +0800
To: Tim May <cypherpunks@cyberpass.net
Subject: Re: The great GAK crack (making GAK economically impossible)
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970916210354.006cecd8@best.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



This seems to ignore a possible worst-case scenario, in which the only
products which are ultimately approved wrap the key using a special law
enforcement key, for example.  If the Powers that be can mandate "escrow"
--- really GAP, Gov't Access to Plaintext --- then it can be mandated to
take a particular form that is defined to be tractable.

At 05:25 PM 9/15/97 -0700, Tim May wrote:
>
>At 8:41 AM -0700 9/15/97, nospam-seesignature@ceddec.com wrote:
>>If I have to GAK my keys, and there then exists a pgp-gak, then we simply
>>recruit the same CPU power that generated the millions of DES keys to just
>>run pgpk-gak with the shortest keylength and send billions of keys to the
>>GAKserver each week.  Many from out of the US if pgp-gak becomes available
>>there.
>>
>>My test software uses a loop that generates a new pair every few seconds
>>on a pentium (and found some very obscure bugs).  I would be required to
>>send all those to the gak.gov.  If they really want them...
>>
>>What it probably means is the govenrment will issue keys or have to
>>license people to create them.
>
>"There ain't no such thing as free escrow."
>
>Some fee will be collected to register keys. "To defray costs" (never mind
>that the government is the party _requiring_ the damned escrow!).
>
>This will stop the "flooding attacks" which a free key escrow system would
>generate. It will also, sadly for us, put an end to many applications where
>keys are generated quickly, transiently, and on an ad hoc basis. There
>simply will be no time to register the keys, and the $10 (or whatever)
>processing fee will be unacceptable for these applications.
>
>--Tim May
>
>There's something wrong when I'm a felon under an increasing number of laws.
>Only one response to the key grabbers is warranted: "Death to Tyrants!"
>---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:----
>Timothy C. May              | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money,
>tcmay@got.net  408-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero
>W.A.S.T.E.: Corralitos, CA  | knowledge, reputations, information markets,
>Higher Power: 2^1398269     | black markets, collapse of governments.
>"National borders aren't even speed bumps on the information superhighway."
>
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