[Dailydave] C...c...c..Cryptopocalypse!

[Lurene]

"crypto-ninja-slash-stealth-sexy-leopard" is my new business card
title, bee tee dubs.

~ Lurene

On 09/03/2013 02:18 AM, Ben Nagy wrote:
> Recently, a lot of people have been talking and possibly even
> thinking about the "cryptopocalypse", surveillance, and the ideal
> rate of exchange between liberty and safety. I have been vaguely
> seeking the ideal derisive verse for a while, but this morning I
> finally realised that it has already been sung.
> 
> "When you believe in things that you don't understand, then you
> suffer."
> 
> - Stevie Wonder [1]
> 
> Without quibbling over minor points, I think it's reasonable to
> view the period since 2001 as one where privacy and fundamental
> individual liberties have been at a steady ebb. Some might
> characterise it as the 'theft' of those things by Governments, but
> really, it's not. It has been driven by fear, and the belief that
> "The Government" can provide protection against Dark Forces.
> However, it's not the steady advance of ridiculous legislation that
> I want to focus on. Those shavings of liberty can be counted where
> they fell, as a simple matter of public record.
> 
> What's interesting is the use of the tools that these Governments
> already have. Nothing fundamental changed in the last few months.
> The NSA, GCHQ, MI5, DSD didn't SUDDENLY ramp up any ops. They
> haven't gone rogue. They've just been doing the same thing they've
> been doing for years, because people ASKED them for protection, but
> weren't too bothered about asking for details. They may not have 
> even had a concept of the missions of these organisations, except
> as a nebulous part of "Government". They believed in things that
> they did not, fundamentally, understand, and now we all suffer.
> 
> So now we, the super smart computer crowd, get to be all smug and
> "I told you so!", because we called it, just like that guy with no
> pants and a bird in his beard.
> 
> What I find hilarious, however, is the reaction. "Tor is the BEST
> tool that fails to fix a different but related problem!", "You
> should all use CryptoCat because I say sorry every time I screw
> up!", "Hemlis messenger is totes unbreakable, and has nice graphic
> design!", "5 Weird Tips to NSA-proof YOUR life!", "Try Silent
> Circle! We have Beards!"
> 
> All of this rubbish is just as much Security Theatre as the shoe
> removals, crotch-gropings and warrantless detention we've been
> enduring at airports. Statically, you're just not a target, so it's
> ALL going to be as "100% Effective" as Werewolf Repellent. So go
> nuts, I guess. Use CraptoCat inside TorBB to update your location
> on Facebook. Whatever.
> 
> If you happen to actually BE a person of interest, however, "better
> than nothing" is actually worse than nothing. If you had zero
> crypto, you might actually think about the content and traffic /
> timing patterns of your comms. If you had no 'anonymisation' then
> you might actually give a shit when and from where you connect. In
> either case you might give some measure of incredibly serious
> thought to:
> 
> - The known capabilities of your anticipated adversary - Your
> operating risk - Your worst case outcome
> 
> Because if you don't have a strong mental picture of these things
> BEFORE you start deploying tools and being all
> crypto-ninja-slash-stealth-sexy-leopard, then you're going to see
> exactly what that worst case outcome looks like from the inside.
> 
> I'm not saying it's "impossible". I'm just saying (to quote The
> Grugq) " Nobody's going to go to jail for you", and that includes
> the authors of these new (and old) "spook-proof" tools. The hard
> truth is that the only way to stay 'safe' from state-level actors
> is going to involve a consistently disciplined regimen of tools,
> techniques and procedures, and any software that claims to make it
> "easy" is flat-out lying.
> 
> Don't outsource understanding.
> 
> "When you believe in things that you don't understand, then you
> suffer. Superstition aint the way."
> 
> ( please now allow the best Clav riff EVER to stick in your head )
> 
> Baby Seals,
> 
> ben
> 
> [1] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDZFf0pm0SE (and if you need
> this WHY ARE YOU SO YOUNG??)
> 
> 
> 
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