HOME OFFICE RESPONDS AGAIN

[Michael Bacon]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Kieran Barry [mailto:cs97ktb@brunel.ac.uk]
> Sent: 29 March 2000 23:02
> To: ukcrypto@maillist.ox.ac.uk
> Subject: Re: HOME OFFICE RESPONDS AGAIN
> 
> 
> One of the home office people (Richard Riley?) said at SFS 
> that they did 
> not expect to demand keys from "reputable organisations". He 
> seemed to be 
> suggesting that most decryption notices were expected to be served on 
> organisations.
> 

The corollary appears to be therefore, that the HO expects to demand keys
from disreputable organisations, disreputable individuals, and reputable
individuals.

Demanding keys and obtaining keys are two different things.

History shows that disreputable organisations have (a) no respect for the
law, and (b) put themselves or their officers out of reach of the law
(either by (re-)locating where there is no extradition or by (sometimes
feigned) death.

There are many disreputable people free to walk the streets because they are
savvy enough to put evidence beyond the reach of the law (eg. by allegedly
burying it in the supports for the M6 through Birmingham).

I submit therefore that only reputable individuals will be prepared to
surrender their keys - mostly in innocence/ignorance.  Many will be unable
to do so - either through ignorance (of their keys or the process for
obtaining their keys) or because they are savvy and have taken sensible
security-related precautions against access to keys.  Many (again the
innocent/ignorant) will not understand the sensible precautions they should
then take to protect their privacy - unless they immediately retain likes of
Donald R.

Michael (Streaky) Bacon
  ____
~(____)>
  "  "
The views expressed herein are my own and
do not necessarily reflect those of my employer