December 2003 - cypherpunks-legacy

Re: NEXT CHALLENGE: so, when does it start?
by aba＠dcs.exeter.ac.uk 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

> Well, I've got the program, and I'm ready to start sweeping > (about 35,600 keys/sec on a P5 90 Mhz NT machine - have to see > how many I can draft for this) - I even compiled for Win 3.11 (less > than 800 keys/sec on a 486/33 - don't think I'll bother). > > I've got the challenge file from Adam's messages. > > But when do we start? Have we started already? Have we completed? Soon. No. And not yet. > It's difficult to tell. There was talk of starting at 12:00GMT (about 6 > AM here on the east coast), but there was no 'start now' message to > the list. At Adam's site, I can see that 'project 11fa' has been > completed, but the key (000000001234) looks like test data. Yes confusion abound. Dead mailer for me, Piete away for a while (back now). Rest assured big announce of a deadline when it is fixed, with plenty of warning. Perhaps a start time of day which is more convenient would be better, also for people using WWW, few likely to be around at 6AM, perhaps later in the day, when the time is decided. > If I try to allocate keys, I get the 600 SLEEP 3600 message, which > suggests strongly that the seach has not started yet. Yes, correct. For people with the unix client, this means they can leave the client running already, and it will sleep in 1hr chunks, until there is something on the server to do. > Adam, when you fix a time to start the search, could you: > > 1. Send a message to the list, clearly saying so, and giving the > time. Okay will do. Adam

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Re: Netly News Fan Mail
by nobody＠REPLAY.COM 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Mike Duvos wrote: > It appears that the CPAC/Sewer folks have read the recent Netly News > article on their activities and were not pleased. This little blurb > healines the "Sewer List" this morning. > > -----Begin Officer Paladino Rant----- > > July 29, 1997, I was told of an article that appeared on the Net. > It appeared on a Netly News site. ... > In the article he links to a few sites showing young boys but he > forgot to link to the 1000's of sites showing young boys in the > nude. > You will see sites exposing young boys, as young as 4 years old, > nude. Strange. I followed some of the links on the Sewer site, and all I found was that they were harassing and slandering people with perfectly legitimate reasons for having normal pictures of clothed children on their site. Are child actors supposed to put pictures of adults who look similar to them on their web sites? Are pictures of themself (fully clothed) "pornography" when gay teens put them on a web site, but pictures of themself that Christian teens put of themself on s web site are "wholesome?" > Freedom is a great thing and this is the greatest country in the > world. I wonder how many soldiers that gave their lifes fighting > for that freedom, had pictures of nude boys in their wallets, > instead of their families. Think about > that....................... No doubt some of those soldiers had naked pictures of their children in their wallets, but I doubt if those pictures gave them a hard-on, as they would obviously do for Officer Paladino. Officer Paladino seems to fail to understand that "his" hard-on does not make "other" people perverts. > -----End Officer Paladino Rant----- > Will someone please buy this poor man a spell-checker? :) Intelligence and educations are not requirements to become a member of the Righteous Right. Neither are tolerance and respect for the personal moral beliefs of others. It will be interesting to see whose "moral values" prevail on the InterNet when the laws and traditions of various societies and nations come into conflict. My prediction is that it will be the moral values of the most intolerant nation with the largest weapons. Dr. Anonymous

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Re: C$ prize for bruting Hal's next challenge?
by aba＠dcs.exeter.ac.uk 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Lucky Green <shamrock(a)netcom.com> writes: > > [me on donating to the c$ prize fund for Hal's 2nd challenge] > I like the idea, but there are two problems with it: > -Not all platfoms let you save e$ to a file. You got to open a shop. > -Leaving the shop ID blank won't work. You got to use @ (wildcard) for shop > ID to turn e$ into a bearer certificate. > > Get the shop going and I'll donate e$50 Okay, a quick email conversation with Mark Grant as to how one goes about doing shops via cgi/www, and a brief bit of fiddling, and here we are: http://dcs.ex.ac.uk/~aba/sslprize.html Just click on amount to donate to the pot. Pay in parts if the amount you want isn't there (ie 15 c$ = 5 c$ + 10 c$). cpunks + ecm folks + digicash enthousiasts, accepting your c$ donations now! Adam

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Re: uncensorable net based payment system?
by Vincent Cate 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Adam Back <aba(a)dcs.ex.ac.uk> said: >Then I can have some net cash savings backed by the rights to 1Tb of >bandwidth at 100 Mb/sec. 100 Mb/sec for 3 days. > >A problem with this is that the market prices of the assets is >continually dropping. How do I hedge against this. Can I buy futures? >Sell 100 Mb/sec for 3 days now in exchange for 200 Mb/sec for 3 days in 1 >years time at an predicted equivalent value? I could imaging making a currency backed by "megabytes of data transfered" to and from my server here in Anguilla. This could be to run a web page, mailing list, or whatever. But you are right that it is an asset continually dropping in value, so it is an odd thing to back a currency with. Would only want to keep enough money in it to do what you currently wanted to do, not as a long term investment. I could imaging just gradually increasing it so that $0.25 for 1 megabyte today became $0.25 for 1.1 megabytes in 3 months, or something like that. Interesting idea... -- Vince

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URGENT ANOTHER SCIENTOLOGY RAID: FACTNET
by syrinx＠c2.org 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

FORWARDED FROM: alt.religion.scientology Believe it or not, Co$ has just struck again! I just talked with Lawrence Wollersheim of FACTNet in Golden, Colorado. As I type (10:20 a.m. PDT), Federal marshals are looking on as Co$ goons grab all of FACTNet's computers, records, archives, and on and on. Look for more information shortly. Please post this EVERYWHERE. Get the word out! -------------------------------------------------------- A special note to T.C. May: These are nice people, eh. Three raids for posting unsealed court documents. Get a clue Tim!

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Re: Third World Man
by monty.harder＠famend.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

TC> When a certain character in a television show referred to "Third World TC> mutants," he was also referring to "your basic brown types." (His words, TC> not mine. Ten credits to anyone who can identify the t.v. show and the TC> character.) "Hill Street Blues", Lt. Howard Hunter. TC> The term "Fourth World" has in the last 20 years come to refer to the TC> countries which are so impoverished as to be almost hopeless. Bangla Desh TC> is the canonical Fourth World nation. Cyberia is the "Fifth World", akin to the "Fifth Dimension". Let the sun shine.... * I love my country. * I fear my government. --- * Monster(a)FAmend.Com *

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NRO: Risky Methods of Data Exploitation
by John Young 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Wonder what's meant by "risky methods" NRO envisions in the article below by: "Using advanced and potentially technologically risky methods of exploiting data to learn more from it." ---------- 30 July 1997, Jane's Defence Weekly NRO opens up to new satellite system ideas For the first time in its history, the once super-secret National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) is considering whether commercial space technology can satisfy its `customer' requirements for reconnaissance data needed by the DoD and the intelligence community. In existence for over 30 years, the NRO is coming in from the cold for one clear reason: acquisition and operation of US reconnaissance satellites continues to account for most of the $28 billion in annual spending by the US intelligence community. Congress wants to find ways to trim the bill by encouraging the NRO to adopt commercial technology and move towards launching smaller, less expensive satellites. The question of whether the NRO should continue to exist was an open debate last year. A panel chaired by Adm David Jeremiah, former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, concluded that the unique partnership between the Director of Central Intelligence and the Defense Secretary to build, operate and manage space-based intelligence systems should continue in the form of the NRO. "There are important inter-relationships between the NRO and DoD space activities in areas such as launch technology, industrial base and communications, and the NRO needs to use DoD systems such as the Global Positioning System as well as the DoD needs to use products from NRO systems," the report said. However the panel also emphasised that all of the relationships between the NRO and the Pentagon need clarification. NRO Director Keith Hall is driving much of the process at the agency towards opening the door to commercial technology and improving the agency. "I do not think that a customer that needs a picture to answer a key question to make an operational decision cares whether that picture comes from one of my satellites, an airplane or a commercial sensor system," he said. "If that means a commercial system can provide some of that, I am entirely for it." A major vehicle for operational change at the NRO is the Future Imagery Architecture (FIA) programme aimed at fielding a next-generation space-based imagery intelligence (IMINT) system. "We have said to our FIA vendors that they are free to propose to us a mixed architecture of government systems and commercial systems," said Hall, noting that such a notion is indeed a first for the agency. "We have not heretofore been involved at all in the acquisition of commercial imagery." The FIA may set a precedent for future reconnaissance acquisition. In mid-1996, the NRO and the old Central Imagery Office, now part of the NIMA, concluded an initial `Phase A' of an architecture study which detailed the attributes of a future imagery system most wanted by NRO customers. It resulted in the identification of more than 20 varying performance levels. The NRO began what it calls the `Phase B' concept programme in May last year. It is working with six contractor teams and the NIMA to determine "what utility would those differences in performance have," said Hall, who became director in March. The NRO expects to publish a final `Phase C' solicitation to industry with detailed performance specifications by early next year. Hall said that the solicitation will have "objective requirements and the relative value the government places on them". Contractors will not be told precisely how to meet those requirements but only the performance objectives. `Phase C' will be separated into a satellite segment and an integration and ground segment. "We have some vendors that are bidding on all segments so theoretically a single contractor could win it all," said Hall. A final contract award is expected late next year with the first satellite system due to be flying early in the next decade. Hall also said that smaller satellites will be considered in the FIA as well as other constellations. Although they present some technical challenges, constellations of smaller satellites mean that more satellites will be on orbit, leading to more frequent `revisits' over targets and less overall system degradation if one satellite fails. The FIA programme has already led to some innovation. The small Surveillance, Targeting and Reconnaissance Satellite (Starlite) being proposed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) for tactical reconnaissance could be considered as a future imagery architecture option. However, it appears more likely it will become a technology demonstration. DARPA's proposal underscores the dilemma of how to draw a distinction between reconnaissance - an NRO mission - and surveillance, which traditionally has been done by the US Air Force in monitoring weather and missile launches for example. "We will do more joint programmes with multiple sensors," predicted Maj Gen Robert Dickman, the DoD space architect. As the NRO and DoD grow closer, Hall believes it is important to acknowledge that commercial systems can only go so far in meeting the precise resolution and product delivery requirements needed by the IC. Aside from fielding the FIA, Hall has set a number of other objectives for the agency, including increasing funding for research and development by re- allocating existing funds. His five mission objectives in research and development are: - Developing new sources and methods, such as collection and processing of information against hard targets; - Orders of magnitude improvements in efficiency and effectiveness of NRO systems; - Using advanced and potentially technologically risky methods of exploiting data to learn more from it; - Using space-based solutions to address "intractable" intelligence problems such as monitoring chemical and biological warfare facilities; - Improving "space services" by assisting the US Defense Department with its space mission when possible. -----

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Re: Third World Man
by tcmay＠got.net 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

At 11:50 PM 8/22/95, MONTY HARDER wrote: >TC> When a certain character in a television show referred to "Third World >TC> mutants," he was also referring to "your basic brown types." (His words, >TC> not mine. Ten credits to anyone who can identify the t.v. show and the >TC> character.) > > "Hill Street Blues", Lt. Howard Hunter. Congratulations! Two other people said "Archie Bunker"/"All in the Family." A good guess, but it was indeed Howard. >TC> The term "Fourth World" has in the last 20 years come to refer to the >TC> countries which are so impoverished as to be almost hopeless. Bangla Desh >TC> is the canonical Fourth World nation. > > Cyberia is the "Fifth World", akin to the "Fifth Dimension". Let the >sun shine.... The dawning of the age of Aquarius? --Tim May ---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---- Timothy C. May | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money, tcmay(a)got.net 408-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero Corralitos, CA | knowledge, reputations, information markets, Higher Power: 2^756839 | black markets, collapse of governments. "National borders are just speed bumps on the information superhighway."

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Re: Certificates/Anonymity/Policy/True Names
by Michael Froomkin 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

On Mon, 21 Aug 1995, Bill Stewart wrote: > can be substantial even if the suit is bogus.) Under what conditions do > you expect somebody to sue a CA? CA certifies key saying that holder has corporate power to enter into deals upto $1million. Keyholder commits fraud, arguably outside corparate powers. CA certifies you are Jack Ripper based on phony id. In fact you are Sam Spade. CA sued for recovery of ensuing fraud. CA certifies that a document is authentic and time-stamps it. Lawyers did not do due dilligence, books were cooked, everyone who touches document gets sued. In each of these cases, if the CA did exactly what it promises and no more, it (arguably) deserves a way to short-circuit the suit, thus keeping its costs down. Since (in the absence of any rules given the newness of the technology) it is very likely that a rich CA would get nuisance suits every time a deal in which it particiapted went sour, the absence of rules will either raise costs CAs have to charge (e.g. to buy insurance) or will keep rich folk out of the industry (which isn't good either, since you want CAs to buy security and to last). Thus the need for clear liability rules. A. Michael Froomkin | +1 (305) 284-4285; +1 (305) 284-6506 (fax) Associate Professor of Law | mfroomki(a)umiami.ir.miami.edu U. Miami School of Law | P.O. Box 248087 | It's hot here. And humid. Coral Gables, FL 33124 USA | See http://www-swiss.ai.mit.edu/6095/articles/froomkin-metaphor/text.html and http://www.law.cornell.edu/jol/froomkin.htm

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Re: Export policy change
by Andrew Loewenstern 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

> I will cheerfully escrow keys for 1$ ecash/key. Please be advised, > however, that key storage will be on an old 40M RLL drive on an > 8088 machine, so retrieval may be a bit slow and unreliable....... hey, my escrow service will store your keys on modern equipment... Plus, I don't care you encrypt your key (with still-legal, non-exportable, escrow-free, strong-crypto) before you escrow it. :-) andrew

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