"Steven M. Bellovin" <smb@research.att.com> writes:
Precisely. What is the *real* threat model?
History does indeed show that believed-secure ciphers may not be, and that we do indeed need a safety margin. But history shows even more strongly that there are many better ways to the plaintext, and that's the real goal.
Why try to pick a Medeco when it's locking a glass door? :-) -derek PS: This isn't a hypothetical; I visited a friend's parents a number of years ago, and noticed that their front door, all glass (with nothing behind it) was locked using a Medeco lock. For those who don't know, a Medeco is a top-of-the-line lock, practically impossible to pick, drill out, etc. -- Derek Atkins, SB '93 MIT EE, SM '95 MIT Media Laboratory Member, MIT Student Information Processing Board (SIPB) URL: http://web.mit.edu/warlord/ PP-ASEL-IA N1NWH warlord@MIT.EDU PGP key available