[pp.int.general] Our ideology

[Philip Hunt]

2009/7/29 Eric Priezkalns <eric.priezkalns at pirateparty.org.uk>:
> On 29 Jul 2009, at 19:32, Philip Hunt wrote:
>> What are the implications of this? One is that the government (or any
>> other organisation) can't read Alice and Bob's mail. To ensure this,
>> they should be allowed to use strong encryption. This means they
>> mustn't be using locked-down hardware (such as the iPhone) where only
>> certain programs can run, and they've no way of knowing if there's a
>> trapdoor that compromises their privacy.
>>
>> We also want to prevent the possibility of traffic analysis
>
> You'll need to be refine this idea.  Not all traffic analysis is about
> making more money from ordinary customers.  Some of it is just about
> managing costs in running a complex network.  Some of it is about preventing
> fraudsters from abusing networks.  Neither of these infringe the rights or
> impact any normal individual.

I meant traffic analysis in the sense of an eavesdropper using it to
spy on Alice and Bob's communications, in order to find things out
abot them that they'd rather keep secret.

> We also need to consider things that people
> take for granted, like the ability to determine the originator of a call if
> they contact the emergency services - something that cannot be done with
> VoIP.

Anonymity should obviously be optional. Knowing where someone is when
the call emergency services can be very useful.

> Anonymity can be a bad thing if individuals don't understand how
> anonymous they are.

Yes, but that's merely a function of people understanding / being
educated in how their computer and software works.

>> Obviously if the government shuts down the internet altogether, or
>> shuts down Alice or Bob's net access, they can't communicate. So
>> internet use must be a basic human right (no 3-strikes laws). Nor
>> should there be blocks on specific protocols (such as BitTorrent).
>
> Treat the right to communicate like the right to get water or power.

A good analogy which we should use. ("you wouldn't cut off someone's
water or electricity supply if they've done something illegal, so why
their net access?")

-- 
Philip Hunt, <cabalamat at googlemail.com>
Campaigns Officer / Press Officer, Pirate Party UK