A short rant:
I am not the least bit shocked to read, in the link published here
earlier today:
http://www.nytimes.com/techweb/TW_Report_U_S_Uses_Key_Escrow_To_Steal_Secrets.html
that the US has, for some time, been conducting economic espionage
against European countries, and that an E.U. report has concluded that
pushing for key escrow and international cryptographic controls has
been aimed to a large extent, not at preventing "crime", but at
espionage against "friendly" countries.
What does shock me, however, is that so many European countries have
been completely blind to what has been going on up to this point. Does
everyone remember the speculation from some time back that the
U.S. had employed ECHELON based espionage to determine the negotiating
positions of various Wassenar countries in order to achieve
international cryptographic controls? I assume that we can't be the
only people who've noted this. Does everyone remember the silly trivia
that many European countries got in exchange for their support on
cryptographic controls? Things like arms contracts -- the phrase
"selling one's birthright for a mess o' pottage" comes to mind.
One wonders, however, if the latest revelations that companies like
Thompson S.A. and Airbus have lost contracts because ECHELON was used
to spy on them and give information on bids to American competitors
will create any change European policy.
If the Europeans know what's good for them, they'll start pushing mass
use of crypto instead of fighting it.
Perry
