On 26 Feb 2013, at 23:19:15, David Singer wrote: > On Feb 26, 2013, at 14:11 , Claudia Diaz <[email protected]> > wrote: >> >> On 26 Feb 2013, at 09:45:38, SM wrote: >>> At 13:15 25-02-2013, Claudia Diaz wrote: >>>> If that entity is a gov/commercial organization, then "security" is the >>>> term likely to be used for the properties you want to achieve, while for >>>> those same properties "privacy" is the usual term when the entity is a >>>> private individual. >>> >>> There is currently a security considerations section in every IETF RFC. >>> The draft recommends having a privacy considerations section too. The >>> question which can arise is in which section the perspective should be >>> covered. In other words it is about how to disambiguate between security >>> and privacy. >> >> >> It's a tough one: I am not sure you can fully disambiguate the two terms if >> you are considering general-purpose protocols. > > For the purposes of debate, I am going to try. > > Security problem: something unintended happened which gave an > attacker/opponent access to data, systems, or capability which was not an > expected part of the identified system/protocol. > > Privacy problem: operation of the system/protocol gives undesirable exposure > of private information not strictly needed for the operation desired. > > If you combine them, then indeed the privacy problem may well get worse. > > > So, for example, the fact that on the internet your IP address is exposed as > part of the protocol also gives your respondent probable knowledge of your > location, and hence time of day. No rules were broken to see your IP address > or draw conclusions from it - there was no 'break-in' or security hole that > was taken advantage of.
That's an interesting distinction. Translating it to concrete scenarios would make us however have to change how we usually use the terms. This can be counterintuitive in some cases: - If I browse to a website and my IP is exposed, then it is a privacy problem. If I browse to the same website over Tor and my IP is exposed because Tor is attacked, then it is a security problem. - If the passwords to access the confidential information at the embassy are sent in clear (because nobody bothered to encrypt them), it is a privacy problem, and not a security problem. If someone manages to get my facebook password, then it is a security problem, and not a privacy problem (because it was not exposed by default). - If the gov listens to my encrypted conversations (eg, by reconstructing the conversation from the traffic), it is a security problem. If the minister of interior talks over an unencrypted line about his plans to catch terrorists, then it is a privacy problem. _______________________________________________ ietf-privacy mailing list [email protected] https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf-privacy
