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Encrypting Phone Storage and Transmission? (2011 Version)
An anonymous reader writes "Soon I'll be moving to one of the hot, culturally restrictive countries which has recently been in the news ... and which monitors and filters web traffic. ISPs and cellular providers are both owned by the government. Needless to say, I'm concerned about privacy and am even posting to my fellow Slashdotters as an anonymous coward. Which smart phones are the best for a) encrypted storage, and b) encrypted transmission? I'm not worried about encrypting SMSs or traditional voice traffic, but I would like all IP traffic as secure as possible. Setting up a server in my less restrictive home country is an option. What storage encryption and transmission encryption would you recommend for that situation? I'm willing to buy yet another device, if necessary. (No, I won't get a SatPhone.) I currently have a Nokia N900 running Maemo5 and another device running Symbian S60v3. I was hoping to have a secure OS like BackTrack running on the N900, but it looks like the software was never totally ported for the device."
I'd be most worried about the: "he's using techniques which we can't crack. so he's really up to no good, and we must therefore have him 'pay us a visit'" (cf the usual: http://xkcd.com/538/). So perhaps you should consider communication that doesn't trivially look like communication that's subversive to the powers-that-are? Just something to mull over; because you see, the birds do fly west on a sunny day.
Is not to use those services. Generally speaking, if the country is that restrictive, they probably will not take kindly to a foreigner trying to bypass the restrictions.
A good rule of thumb to travel: obey local laws. If you don't like them, don't go there. As a foreigner, you are in a pretty risky spot to try to take matters into your own hand.
I thought the same, but there are a few important supplementary questions (to which I don't know the answers):
I understand wanting to maintain your privacy as a matter of principal, but ultimately you're the one choosing to go to their country. You don't have to like it, but you do have to live by their rules. From my own experience travelling in some of the more repressive parts of the world, I would say that there's generally a certain amount of leeway given to foreigners that isn't afforded to locals, but you're still safer not giving them an excuse to pay you any extra attention. What I can't tell you (especially without knowing which country you're going to) is what they will or will not consider to be an excuse; honestly I doubt that even a police chief in the country could give you a definitive answer in a lot of places - the strictness of the definition tends to be inversely proportional to the wealth and influence wielded by the person that it is being applied to.
Just bear in mind that while it may be discomforting to know they're reading your emails home, they probably don't care what you're saying. They might well start caring about the fact that they can't see what you're saying.
Could a constant stream of encrypted data going thru his carrier and ISP bring government attention to him or her?
Will this hot, culturally restrictive government just throw their hands up and say, "well... he's got a VPN... not much we can do"?
THL phish sticks
I am not in a restrictive country, however my phone lines are tapped on a regular basis since i deal with defendants.
Y'know, if the second part of that statement really is true, you might just want to re-think the first.
Ahh - My eye!
The doctor said I'm not supposed to get Slashdot in it!
Before you start trying to figure out how to circumvent being spied upon by the host government, maybe you should look into the possible consequences of this. It may well be that if they find out that you're doing this, things could really turn out bad for you.
It's generally a good idea to try to actually obey the laws of the country you're going to, especially if it's as volatile as you say it is. If you're a foreign national and don't have any sort of diplomatic protections, you could be playing a risky game.
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
That's just asking for trouble....unless you happen to be someone that wears some form of the various headgear/hats the peoples over there seem to all sport.
Why any sane person from the free part of the world would go over there....especially NOW...is beyond me.
I mean, hell...I'd do just about anything for a dollar..but I'd not risk my life (and head) by going over there for any amount of money.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
Exactly. My advice to someone going to a country like this is to make damn sure you stay under the radar. Be prepared to give up your daily porn habit, your torrenting, and your urge to give your opinion on every political topic under the sun. If this is too much for you, then don't go to countries with oppressive regimes.