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EFF Warns That Email Privacy Is In Jeopardy
MojoKid writes with this excerpt from HotHardware:
"According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a
dangerous legal precedent has just been set that can potentially unravel existing federal privacy protections for e-mail and Internet usage. The alert from the EFF is not just to sound a general warning, but it also takes the form of an Amicus curiae (friend of the court) brief, filed with the federal 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals, asking for the court's legal finding to be overturned... The findings of this case
could become the foundation of a legal precedent upon which other similar cases can subsequently be based. If that were to be the case, then the unauthorized retrieving of e-mails from an e-mail server would not be considered a violation of the federal Wiretap Act, which
will then open the door for government-sponsored snooping."
I've NEVER considered email to have been private: encrypted or not.
Even if breaking in houses is illegal, I still have a lock on my door. Why? Because some people don't care about the law.
Even if snooping on e-mail is illegal, you still need to encrypt your mails. Why? Because some governments don't care about the law.
Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power lost.
Of course we should take technical precautions, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't stop this through legal action either. It seems like a Sisyphean task at this point, but we have to hold firm to our principles nonetheless.
Fnord.
The idea that any communication involving telecommunication companies in the US is private is quite laughable, however, if there's even going to be the slightest chance of restoring or at least slowing down the rate of erosion of the right to a reasonable expectation of privacy every battle must be fought and thank the matrix we've got the EFF to do it.
Personally I'd sign up for the government spy net - after all, the government doesn't listen to my complaints - if they read everything I write maybe something will sink in.
Haiku for you!
The government, not just the US but any government, cannot be trusted, simply because they're just a bunch of people with an agenda.
Fixed that for ya.
A.I. Research. The peculiar science in which we know the question and we know the answer, but can't show the working
Don't all people except for those in a coma have an agenda? Doesn't that make your 'fix' about as informative as saying that water is wet?
Even if the ISP or whomever cannot share or pry into email for whatever reason, what's to prevent someone from accidentally hitting "reply all" or copying their entire address book and sending it out to the world? That's what I meant by my original statement. It's not so much folks prying, it's "accidents" that I'm worried about.
I think you are mistaking the "expectation that you do have privacy" with the "the expectation that you should have privacy."
To me, the "expectation of privacy" says that I am supposed to have privacy, not that I have it.
J'aime mieux les méchants que les imbéciles, parce qu'ils se reposent. -- Alexandre Dumas
I have discussed this issue with some friends who seem to believe that Obama will reverse the current warrantless surveillance practices. If history is to serve as a guide, it seems clear that he will not. I am convinced that contacting our legislators and voting for Democrats are two of the least effective means of protecting our rights. Indeed, the most effective way of protecting our rights is by asserting them. We as Americans have the responsibility of actively protecting our rights, rather than depending on the ineptitude and conflicted interests of our elected officials. This is why I propose not only opportunistic encryption, but also what I call gratuitous encryption. This means the ubiquitous use and advocacy of PGP, SSH, SSL, VPNs, tor, full disk encryption, and every other tool we have at our disposal.
Check out this page for ways to assert your rights.
How is unencrypted email different to a postcard?
Look, the fact that postcards and most emails are sent in plaintext isn't what this is about.
So far as I'm aware, the United States Post Office doesn't scan, OCR, and store the contents of every postcard that goes through its facilities. If they did, and then made that information available to the government or anyone else that wanted it, you would have a point. In other words, unencrypted does not mean "indexed, cross-indexed and searchable."
The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
While i agree, they do, they still shouldn't be reading it, even if its in open text, without a warrant.
You should be able to expect a certain level of privacy.
Its not just our government btw ( and its debatable if the government is 'ours' anymore anyway.. )
---- Booth was a patriot ----
Grabbing a message from the stream is not that hard. Yes.
Getting access to a pile of email that was sent over the course of days to years, I believe, is a much bigger issue. The stream takes good timing, access and preparation. Access to inbox or other folders of an entire email collection is scary. If the private sign leaves the stored email it will allow providers to do what they will with these email documents in the collections of users. Sending a message to a friend about a need for a product could turn into a barrage of ads for same or competing products. Storing old messages with idle threats with a buddy could turn into law suits. There could be corporate theft of ideas and more. How about getting fired from a job for idle discussions of other things you think about regarding other lines of work or even a competing company. Then there are the criminal cases that could be setup against you for some idle "what-if" messages with a child, friend, or co-worker. Information and insight about an individual could cause all kinds of difficulties in the wrong hands. If I wanted someone to be party to a conversation, I would have sent the message to that party when I wrote it.
Email server ownership is a big help in these times. "Guilty until proven Innocent" is the opponent of privacy laws and practice. I do not have the time to waste proving every little aspect of my life was not a crime just because someone came into a conversation late, reading their own storyline into my existence. As it is now in consumer America, I have to open boxes at the checkout counter just to ensure the actual item purchased is in the box, and not just floor tiles. I also have to call phone and credit companies over charges that were added in error. Do I need to mention the corrections on food from a drive through, even after seeing the list in perfect order on the screen before getting to the window?
Do not add to my itinerary, as it is full.
Install Thunderbird, GnuPG and the EnigMail extension.
And get everyone you correspond with to do that as well.
You do realise that it's a matter of time before mandatory backdoor to all encrypted traffic is required by law.
ELOI, ELOI, LAMA SABACHTHANI!?
Not to be flippant, but does anyone really believe there is any privacy anymore with simple, unencrypted email?
Does anyone really believe there is any privacy anymore with ANYTHING? Technology, government and law enforcement practices, and the general public indifference are all converging to insure that nothing is hidden. Rant and rave, fight the good fight, but those of us who give a shit are becoming increasingly rare. It's an out of control freight train that can't be stopped -- delayed maybe, diverted to do less damage perhaps, but unstoppable.
The only thing you can do is try to leave as small a footprint as possible. I know damn well that if someone really wanted to find me, or know my business, they could do so. I long ago abandoned any notion of being able to prevent any and all personal, corporate, or governmental snooping. All I can do is use some common sense, do nothing to call attention to myself, and try to make it as difficult as possible so as to not be worth the effort for all but those who are truly determined. And try to avoid doing the things that would make those determined folks want to find me.
Unfortunately, the list of those things gets longer everyday, and all those peculiar interests and eccentric foibles I used to take pride in may now well brand me as "suspicious" and worthy of further scrutiny.
"Every great cause begins as a movement, becomes a business, and eventually degenerates into a racket." -- Eric Hoffer