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Microsoft Makes Skype Easier To Monitor
In a follow-up to a story earlier this week, derekmead writes "Skype has gone under a number of updates and upgrades since it was bought by Microsoft last year, mostly in a bid to improve reliability. But according to a report by the Washington Post, Skype has also changed its system to make chat transcripts, as well as users' addresses and credit card numbers, more easily shared with authorities. As we've already seen with Facebook and Twitter, big Internet firms aren't digging their heels in against government requests, which shouldn't come as a shock; angering the authorities is bad business. The lesson then is that, while the Internet will always retain a vestige of its Wild West days, as companies get bigger and bigger, they're either going to play ball with governments or go the way of Kim Dotcom."
Don't get your hopes up. It's "on the internet". Seems consitutional rights don't apply there.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
So the people "up to something" will use encryption we cannot monitor, you say? Well, I guess that means that everyone who doesn't use our standard encryption that isn't worth being called encryption is suspicious just for using an encryption method we cannot eavesdrop in.
Thank you for your input, citizen, it will be considered with the next round of new laws.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
Time to switch to something where we actually know what the software is doing.
Now all have to do is convince friends, family, business and professional contacts to abandon Skpe. Something which is not going to happen.
Umm, how about no thanks? It's time for the programmer community to develop easy to use, robust, strongly encrypted, point to point programs.
And that will happen right after ipv6 becomes standard and NAT goes away. point to point is pretty tricky to make 'just' work in our currented "ipv4 nearly everyone is behind a NAT system".
Realistically, a middle man is going to be here for a long while yet.
That will work until the alternative solution crosses a certain threshold of users, the founders sell out to Microsoft or Apple or Google and the new technology is monetized and put under monitoring, just like Skype and Vonage and Napster and Lindows before them. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Most people THINK they do not have anything to hide, such as when they talk about the antics of their 3-year-old grandson or other inane conversations. Therefore most people would not switch or quit using Skype. Anyone who does have deep dark secrets they wish to hide from the KGB, FBI, NSA, Gestapo or other such agencies, would not be using Skype or any other easily intercepted communication system.
A sufficiently advanced simulation is indistinguishable from reality.
Once you do that the government will move in an legislate something else. That is what governments do.