PGP problems

[Brian Morrison]

On Tue, 01 Aug 2000 21:09:07 -0300, Trevor Smith wrote:

>>As you may know, the RIP bill has received the Royal Assent in the UK,
>>we're all in the government's gunsights over here now :-(
>
>Don't know what RIP is. What is it?

Sorry, rather UK specific.

It is the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Bill, sponsored by the
Home Office. It is now law, and business and civil liberties types did
not manage to water it down enough for comfort. The main difficulty is
that it allows just about anything in the way of interception and
despite government assurance that they do not intend that certain uses
will be made, it doesn't mean a future government couldn't do it. There
is also a Code of Practice intended to make it clear what happens in
given circumstances, but it is currently in draft form and full of
holes. It states clearly that seized keys should be stored securely,
but then goes on to say that the level of security required is
inadequate and also that any official allowing a seized key to leak
will not be open to prosecution.

-- 
Brian Morrison                                  bdm@fenrir.demon.co.uk
              do you know how far this has gone?
               just how damaged have I become?
                                      'Even Deeper' by Nine Inch Nails