December 2003 - cypherpunks-legacy

Re: Disturbing statistics on wiretaps
by Mike Godwin 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Steve Bellovin writes: > I realize that you know more about the relevant case law than I do. It > would be pretty sad if you didn't. But I'm not completely ignorant of > either this subject in particular, or constitutional law in gneral, and > I like to learn more. I'm asking to be educated, and I don't like to > rely on assertions by authority. This is both a fair comment and a fair request. Sorry for being irritable yesterday. > I advanced what I thought was a > fairly strong argument against your point. Further, the wording of the > statute seems pretty clear to me. 18 USC 2515: > > Prohibition of use as evidence of intercepted wire, > oral, or electronic communications > > Whenever any wire, oral, or electronic communications has > been intercepted, no part of the contents of such communication > and no evidence derived therefrom may be received in evidence in > any trial, hearing, or other proceeding in or before any court, > grand jury, department, officer, agency, regulatory body, legis- > lative committee, or other authority of the United States, a > State, or a political subdivision thereof if the disclosure of > that information would be in violation of this chapter. This is not an accurate presentation of 2515, Steve. "Electronic communications" was not added to 18 USC 2515 by ECPA. The statutory exclusionary rule applies only to wire and oral communications. > As I read it, if the government doesn't follow the wiretap rules, > the evidence thereby obtained can't be used. What have I missed? You've missed the actual language of 18 USC 2515. I don't know where you got this one. --Mike

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Triple DES products hitting market
by Anonymous 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

excerpted from: Communications Week No. 473, September 27, 1993 page 36 Cylink Triples Encryption by Sharon Fisher Sunnyvale, Calif. - Cylink Corp. has announced an encryption product that improves security by encrypting data three times using current standards. The Cylink product uses the Data Encryption Standard, which defines a 56-bit key for scrambling messages to prevent access by unauthorized users. DES was adopted in 1977 as the U.S. federal standard for data encryption. Skirting DES Limitations Some users have expressed concern, however, that DES' 56 bits cannot prevent a determined attacker from using more powerful hardware and software to crack the code. The Cylink product addresses the problem by using DES to encrypt the data more than once, according to company officials. Cylink's Cipher/Decipher-HSi offers triple-DES, which encrypts DES data three times, and gives the 56-bit key the effect of a 112-bit key, according to the company, based here. The triple-DES approach makes the Cylink product more secure than the government's proposed Clipper system, which uses an 80-bit key, the company said. Users could get the triple-DES effect by manually encrypting data three times, but the process would take three times as long as single DES encryption, Cylink noted. Cidec-HSi uses improved circuit technology that performs the three encryptions without taking that long, the company said. Cidec-HSi works at speeds of up to 2.048 million bits per second and is available with a wide variety of interfaces, Cylink said. It also includes a public key management system, which lets users exchange keys so that they can read each other's messages. The device also offers an optional embedded channel service unit, which can be connected directly to the public T1 carrier network, the company said. Cylink said it can retrofit current Cidec-HSi systems so they can benefit from the new triple-DES technology. AT&T Compatibitlity The company said that Cidec-HSi meets compatibility standards for use with AT&T's Accunet T1.5 and Extended Superframe Format services. Cylink can be reached at 735-5800.

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Re: saturation tactics?
by ssteele＠eff.org 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Nate asks: >BTW, what is the snail-mail address to send these letters to? Willam B. Robinson United States Department of State Bureau of Politico-Military Affairs Office of Defense Trade Controls Washington, DC 20522-0602 George suggests: >yeah, here's a cheaper version. Write to the arms excport license people >and pester them with questions: I'm a BBS operator, what should I do?; I'm a >businessperson travelling overseas and need my crypto to comm with the home >office what should I do?; all this kind of thing. Swamp them with letters. >Every person and every circumstance which even remotely fits. > >An alternative version which would require more guts and perhaps a serious >conscientious decision about whether it's worth making this an act of civil >disobedience, is to write to them and say, "I'm a BBS operator, not an arms >merchant, and on the strength of my 1st-A rights I'm not going to censor my >board or get a license..." or "I'm a businessperson who travels & takes my >cryupto out of the country on my laptop to comm with the home office; I'm >not an arms dealer either and I don't intend to get a license..." And >again, there is strength in numbers here. I like the first idea. As an attorney (stop with the hissing out there!), I feel a need to remind you that these State Department guys are serious. They can really make your life miserable -- just ask Phil Z. I strongly suggest that you keep that in mind before openly suggesting that you intend to export encryption. I agree that the export laws stink. I'm hoping we can get the law nixed without anyone going to jail. Shari

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unsubscribe
by jhall＠lambda.msfc.nasa.gov 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

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Triple DES Wanted
by thug＠phantom.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I'm looking for a Triple DES file encryption program that takes arguments in the same form as /bin/crypt or /usr/bin/des. Is there a /bin/3des out there somewhere? Has anyone come across 3des.c? And if so, can you point me in the direction where it may be found. Thanks.. If no such program exists, I think it would be very useful to the cypherpunks community if it were made available. I'd also like to see a similar stand-alone version of IDEA (/usr/bin/idea?), but since it is patented, that's probably not going to happen, which is why I'm looking for something like /bin/3des. l8r, thug

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Re: Disturbing statistics on wiretaps
by Matt Blaze 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Mike Goodwin writes: >Steve Bellovin writes: > > >Here's the actual language of 18 USC 2515 (note the omission of >"electronic communications"): > > >Sec. 2515. Prohibition of use as evidence of intercepted wire or oral >communications > >Whenever any wire or oral communication has been intercepted, no part of >the contents of such communication and no evidence derived therefrom may >be received in evidence in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding in or >before any court, grand jury, department, officer, agency, regulatory >body, legislative committee, or other authority of the United States, a >State, or a political subdivision thereof if the disclosure of that >information would be in violation of this chapter. >--Mike Out of curiousity, what's "wire communication" for the purpose of this statute? How does that differ from electronic communication (other than, perhaps, non-voice data traffic sent via cellular telephone)? Thanks -matt

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Re: Disturbing statistics on wiretaps
by Perry E. Metzger 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Mike Godwin says: > Sec. 2515. Prohibition of use as evidence of intercepted wire or oral > communications > > Whenever any wire or oral communication has been intercepted, no part of > the contents of such communication and no evidence derived therefrom may > be received in evidence in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding in or > before any court, grand jury, department, officer, agency, regulatory > body, legislative committee, or other authority of the United States, a > State, or a political subdivision thereof if the disclosure of that > information would be in violation of this chapter. How does the statute define "wire" communication? Perry

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Re: Subterranean Clipper Chip Blues
by J. Michael Diehl 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

According to Jim Thompson: > > Subject: Subterranean Clipper Chip Blues > > PC/Computing, October 1993 > Page 468 (opposite inside back cover). > Note: _abc_ indicates italics. > > Illustration: several computers with keyholes in the screens. > Clinton's smiling face rises from the White House, as a long > arm reaches out with a key... > Anyone out there with a color scanner??? PLEASE scan this puppy! Distributing .gif images represents the next generation of Electronic Propaganda! So, if anyone has a scanner, please scan this one and make if available to us. Thanx in advance. J. Michael Diehl ;^) |*The 2nd Amendment is there in case the mdiehl(a)triton.unm.edu | Government forgets about the 1st! <RL> Mike.Diehl(a)f29.n301.z1 |*God is a good Physicist, and an even .fidonet.org | better Mathematician. <Me> al945(a)cwns9.ins.cwru.edu|*I'm just looking for the opportunity to (505) 299-2282 (voice) | be Politically Incorrect! <Me> Can we impeach him yet? |*Protected by 18 USC 2511 and 18 USC 2703. PGP Key = 7C06F1 = A6 27 E1 1D 5F B2 F2 F1 12 E7 53 2D 85 A2 10 5D

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Re: Clipper specifics
by cme＠ellisun.sw.stratus.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I'd be surprised if they allow you a month or two for more comments. My current fantasy about Clipper is that the NSA did a deal with AT&T, demanding removal of DES chips in favor of Skipjack, getting AT&T to buy into a limited delay in product introduction with the gov't promising to get the Skipjack standard in place by Summer so that the AT&T phones weren't held up too long. That's all out of my own head, but it hangs together. Does anyone know specifics about AT&T's prior plans? Was there a DES version? - Carl

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Re: Orange book, the NSA, and the NCSC
by jim＠Tadpole.COM 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Been to "the fort" twice, once on 'official business', once on a joyride around the 'campus'. :-) ("See them big sat dishes? Don't want to get too close to them, marines with guns up there.") The visitor's center has a small, but facinating museum of crypto stuff, everything from enigma-style machines to a device that does I-don't-remember-how-many-but-it-was-huge gigaflops on a hand-rolled chip made on site, to a device for intercepting (and decrypting) microwave transmissions. Not much satilite stuff. Pretty cool. The guards all wear big (loaded, I checked) guns. You're issued a little badge to carry around your neck. Get too far from your escort, or in a room without your escort, and they get really upset (from what I was told, I didn't try). Across the highway is a state camp for delinquent boys. Jim

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