CDR: Re: Canada outlaws anonymous remailers (was Re: GigaLaw.com Daily News, September 15, 2000)

[Tim May]

At 10:58 AM -0400 9/15/00, R. A. Hettinga wrote:
>I wonder what this does to Zero Knowledge Systems?
>...
>At 3:52 AM -0700 on 9/15/00, GigaLaw.com wrote:
>
>
>>  Canadian Ruling Could Unmask Anonymous E-mailers
>>       Canadian e-mailers can no longer hide behind a cloak of anonymity if
>>  reasonable grounds exist to show they've distributed defamatory statements
>>  over the Internet. The change in Canadian law came after a landmark court
>>  ruling this week when an Ontario Superior Court Justice ordered Internet
>>  service provider iPRIMUS Inc. of Toronto to reveal the identity of an
>  > anonymous e-mailer.

It's what many of us predicted (in writing, here) when it was 
announced that ZKS would locate in Canada because of (or influenced 
by) Canada's supposedly freeer policies on encryption. I wrote at the 
time, as others did, that Canada's supposedly "free export policy" 
was likely temporary and was more of a "show of independence" against 
what they perceived to be U.S. control and influence.

Fact is, as we wrote at the time, Canada lacks a solid constitution 
for protection of basic liberties. Sure, defenders will scurry to 
point out, Canada now _has_ a charter/constitution. But it has not 
been the bedrock that the U.S.C. has been, nor has it had a history 
of important tests.

Canada is fundamentally an ad hocracy.

As for the effect on ZKS, I haven't seen any actual uses of Freedom, 
or users of it, so I doubt there will be much effect at all.

--Tim May
-- 
---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:----
Timothy C. May              | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money,
ComSec 3DES:   831-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero
W.A.S.T.E.: Corralitos, CA  | knowledge, reputations, information markets,
"Cyphernomicon"             | black markets, collapse of governments.