>From: Adam Shostack <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>Sent: Jan 29, 2005 12:45 PM
>To: Mark Allen Earnest <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>Cc: [email protected]
>Subject: Re: Simson Garfinkel analyses Skype - Open Society Institute

>But, given what people talk about on their cell phones and cordless
>phones, and what they send via unencrypted email, they are acting like
>they think their communications are secure in the absence of any
>encryption.  So I don't think adding some 'cryptographic mumbo jumbo'
>is going to change their sense of security in the wrong direction.

One thing most people seem to miss about this, though, is that cellphones and 
cordless phones are *great* for privacy from other humans who live in your 
house or work in your office.  When you don't want your children to hear a 
conversation, you can go take the call in the bathroom or in the car while 
you're driving alone.  Everybody seems to miss this--cellphones and cordless 
phones don't diminish privacy, they just move it around.  Sophisticated 
eavesdroppers can violate more of your privacy, but nosy family members, 
roommates, and office mates can violate a lot less.  I thnk most people 
correctly evaluate which of these groups is more likely to do something 
unpleasant with what they learn by eavesdropping.  

It seems to me that VOIP pushes this in a somewhat different direction, because 
it's probably easy for your high-speed internet access (maybe a wireless hop to 
a router that talks to a cable modem) to be eavesdropped by moderately 
technically savvy nosy neighbors, and because there are a lot of criminals who 
are using more technology, and will surely target VOIP if they think they can 
make any money off it.  

>Adam

--John Kelsey

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