visentin@imdwd01.milano.italtel.it writes:
I'm trying to address the following issue: people at my company need to exchange sensitive information with their colleagues abroad (e.g. East Europe, or Southern America). ... I read somewhere that Russian law forbids the use on encryption: is this correct ?
More or less. President Yeltsin's edict of April 3, 1995, prohibits the use of encryption without a licence from FAPSI. I've been told that "everybody" continues to use PGP and no one's had any trouble yet. However in today's climate I can imagine a Western business blatantly violating the edict, being threatened with prosecution, and being shaken down for a bribe... For a peace of mind, why don't your correspondents go to FASPI and simply ask for a licence. They're nice people. You might have more of a problem in France, where, as far as I know, you must deposit your cryptographic keys with the government, so it may read your correspondence. Soon this may be required in the U.S. as well. --- Dr. Dimitri Vulis Brighton Beach Boardwalk BBS, Forest Hills, N.Y.: +1-718-261-2013, 14.4Kbps