FBI's crypto backdoor plans require them to win the war on general purpose computing

Discussion in 'privacy general' started by lotuseclat79, Apr 29, 2015.

  1. lotuseclat79

    lotuseclat79 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jun 16, 2005
    Posts:
    5,390
    FBI's crypto backdoor plans require them to win the war on general purpose computing.

    -- Tom
     
    Last edited: Apr 29, 2015
  2. Nebulus

    Nebulus Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jan 20, 2007
    Posts:
    1,635
    Location:
    European Union
    Interesting article, thanks!

    I would like to add that there are more problems with a backdoor than the ones specified in the article. For instance, the article is limited to mobile platforms, and it ignores the desktop ones. In order to ban safe cryptography, you would need to also control the PC side, which might be even more complicated because of the way it was designed from the beginning. Also, considering that this initiative is backed by US and UK agencies but the world is much bigger than that, they would also have to "force" this change in all other countries as well, otherwise getting a secure crypto program would be a matter of downloading it from a site hosted in another country.
     
  3. Carver

    Carver Registered Member

    Joined:
    Feb 5, 2006
    Posts:
    1,910
    Location:
    USA
    I really don't see how the FBI/NSA is going to control every PC user in every country.
     
  4. noone_particular

    noone_particular Registered Member

    Joined:
    Aug 8, 2008
    Posts:
    3,798
    In the long term, they could do this by controlling the companies that make the components and the operating systems. Planned obsolescence is one of the primary tools being used to this end. If you discount eye candy and performance improvements directly attributable to hardware improvements, the user has less control over a PC than they did 10 or 20 years ago. Current PCs and internet devices also store records of just about everything that you opened, installed, removed, viewed, etc, including material on external devices. Current internet devices do the same things that the NSA does, record and log everything. Who benefits from this behavior, other than government agencies?
     
  5. noone_particular

    noone_particular Registered Member

    Joined:
    Aug 8, 2008
    Posts:
    3,798
    Another method being employed with increasing regularity is the creation of stores and lists of approved products for devices. The user is slowly losing the ability to install or use anything that the device vendor doesn't approve of.
     
  6. RockLobster

    RockLobster Registered Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2007
    Posts:
    1,812
    They are trying to create a world where only the 1% have freedom and access to everything life has to offer and the other 99% are to be drones that just live to work and are denied access to anything that might possibly threaten the lifestyle the 1% have become accustomed to regardless of how restrictive that is. This has to stop. We need to fight for what is OUR world.
     
    Last edited: Apr 29, 2015
  7. Carver

    Carver Registered Member

    Joined:
    Feb 5, 2006
    Posts:
    1,910
    Location:
    USA
    The internet is supposed to be a equalizer to give access to things that in the past have been reserved for the well connected and the rich, I think they will succeed at first but the success rate will slow and then then stop.
     
  8. aztony

    aztony Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2012
    Posts:
    737
    Location:
    The Valley Arizona
    Good points all. But I think this last one is mostly applicable to those users who defer their thinking to others. A vendor can recommend all they want, but I only put on my system what I want/need, and or, comfortable with. I'm sure there are many other users with that mindset.
     
  9. Reality

    Reality Registered Member

    Joined:
    Aug 25, 2013
    Posts:
    1,198
    How many? In reality I would guess very very few percentage-wise, that are capable of make informed choices for a number of reasons, such as time restraints. It's geared that way, and the spinoff plays into the hands of the TLAs and the like.

    If it's not them, it's going to be someone, that's for sure. No pun intended but the net is drawing in.
     
  10. driekus

    driekus Registered Member

    Joined:
    Nov 30, 2014
    Posts:
    489
    Why dont they just take the option of policing encryption. They can just use their existing taps on the carriers and ISPs. If they detect data encrypted they can send the police and arrest the person. Dealing with encrypted devices is even simpler, require carrier approved devices with built in backdoors to be required to connect to the cell phone network. Make tampering with the OS a criminal offence and put backdoors on the phone to detect tampering. You could easily do the same with PCs. I am sure Microsoft would love having a mandate to lock UEFI from open source software like Linux.
     
  11. noone_particular

    noone_particular Registered Member

    Joined:
    Aug 8, 2008
    Posts:
    3,798
    The one flaw in that idea is the current implementation of planned obsolescense. Currently, end of life doesn't mean the end of the products useful life, only the end of official support. Right now, they can't force users of XP (or 98 ) to upgrade. Expect that to change in the near future. Don't be in a hurry to get rid of older but functioning hardware, especially if it does everything that you need.
     
  12. RockLobster

    RockLobster Registered Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2007
    Posts:
    1,812
    I think what noone_particular was referring to is devices like tablets where the only choice you have is to install from their online store because it will only accept software that is signed with their own key.
     
  13. RockLobster

    RockLobster Registered Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2007
    Posts:
    1,812
    IMO the best thing to do is ditch windows altogether and install a Linux distro. Unless you are a gamer, games is about the only thing Windows has over Linux.
     
  14. login123

    login123 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jul 12, 2007
    Posts:
    184
    Imho there are not many users who can make the sort of choices they would need to. Ten percent, maybe less.
    You guys here on Wilders maybe don't realize just how tech savvy you are, compared to most folks. I read here all the time and learn a lot, but rarely post, usually have nothing useful to add. In my corner of the world, there are plenty of folks who struggle to update adobe's flash player. :) No slur intended, they just don't the have time nor the inclination to "study up".

    Those folks offer an entry point for hackers & snoops, even if I have my computer locked up tighter than windows ME.
     
  15. aztony

    aztony Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2012
    Posts:
    737
    Location:
    The Valley Arizona
    Was never keen on tablets before, with that characteristic I'd be even less inclined to own one.
     
  16. aztony

    aztony Registered Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2012
    Posts:
    737
    Location:
    The Valley Arizona
    That is probably a factor in what's driving the creation of stores and lists of approved products for devices.
     
  17. noone_particular

    noone_particular Registered Member

    Joined:
    Aug 8, 2008
    Posts:
    3,798
    Linux isn't a cure-all for PC woes. One only needs to look back at the last year and all of the vulnerabilities that they'd had to fix. A lot of the more "user friendly" distros are becoming a lot like Windows, including bloat and undesired features. The more knowledgeable users can make Linux much more secure and tailored to their needs, as can Windows users. In both cases, the unskilled user isn't going to get it done. Linux isn't a solution. It's another platform to build on. Both platforms can be made into something good or perverted into total garbage.
     
  18. RockLobster

    RockLobster Registered Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2007
    Posts:
    1,812
    I know that's why I use pure Debian Linux stable version, they don't implement what you might call cutting edge developments like Ubuntu or Mint might do until they have been out in the wild for quite some time and properly evaluated and tested.
     
  19. mirimir

    mirimir Registered Member

    Joined:
    Oct 1, 2011
    Posts:
    9,252
    Less, I'd say. Most just don't have a clue :( For example, I've been reading about the protests against police brutality in Baltimore, USA. The police are monitoring social media, and are extensively using Stingray (see https://www.wilderssecurity.com/threads/police-keep-quiet-about-cell-tracking-technology.361734/) to track organizers and reporters (who tend to follow groups of protesters). There are private social media, and there are ways to detect and block Stingrays. But how would one spread the word?
     
  20. krustytheclown2

    krustytheclown2 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Nov 18, 2014
    Posts:
    210
    While Linux is by no means perfect, I think it's pretty obvious that a clean installation of Ubuntu or Mint is going to be far more secure than a clean install of any version of Windows. There's far fewer ways for a Linux user to mess up so catastrophically as to get infected by any malware- you can probably download torrents, go on pirating websites, etc for years before ever stumbling into an issue- compared to about 5 minutes with XP and IE. If your adversary is a government, then sure, far more caution needs to be exercised, but you can at the very least be pretty certain that no TLA has a backdoor set up for use on demand, which can't be said for any Windows since 7.
     
  1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.