From: nobody@REPLAY.COM (Anonymous)
Date: Sat, 11 Oct 1997 06:53:50 +0800
To: cypherpunks@cyberpass.net
Subject: Re: CAK as a really bad form of corporate networking
Message-ID: <199710102238.AAA07439@basement.replay.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



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Tim May wrote:
>My conclusion is that PGP for Business does very little for real
>corporate access in "hit by a truck" situations, as most of these
>critical files (fill in the blanks , but thinkof chip design files,
>source code for programs , lab notebooks , etc .) are simplyNOT ever
>e-mailed. And if they are e -mailed , this is completelya tertiary
>issue.

One should also ask who is managing the company and why.  It is never
a good policy to leave important components of the company in the
hands of particular people for long periods of time.  While people die
relatively infrequently, they do often become frustrated or angry and
leave the company.

For instance, one really has to ask what is going on when a programmer
doesn't check in his or her code for six months.  And one really has
to wonder how useful that code is going to be to anyone.

My policy has been to discard half completed work when people leave.
It's just cheaper to start anew than to clean up and debug
undocumented code which nobody understands.

In general, the case where "important documents" have to be retrieved
from a departed employee's desk or computer are fairly uncommon.  And
the case where it is necessary to intercept a departed employee's
e-mail is pretty much non-existent.

>So who is the real customer for PGP for Business and its form of
>plaintext recovery?

I am looking forward to hearing the precise mechanisms behind PGP,
Inc.'s change in tune.  Were some of those investors shills?  In terms
of governmental expenditures, it would cost nothing to flood PGP with
great investment deals.  It would probably cost less than Clipper
itself.  And all of the former troublemakers can be quietly ridden
down and finally trained to accept the saddle of good stock deals and
contractual obligations.  If that was the mechanism, it's pretty slick
and to be admired by sportsmen everywhere.

It is the sense of Monty Cantsin that a number of readers of the list
are downplaying PGP Inc.'s actions because they hold the character of
certain people involved with the company in high regard.  This is
probably an error.  Character must be judged by actions.  The actions
are clear.

Monty Cantsin
Editor in Chief
Smile Magazine
http://www.neoism.org/squares/smile_index.html
http://www.neoism.org/squares/cantsin_10.html

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