Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk
Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!looking!brad
From: brad@looking.on.ca (Brad Templeton)
Subject: Re: The end of privacy... and so what comes next?
Organization: Looking Glass Software Ltd.
Date: Tue, 02 Apr 91 05:42:49 GMT
Message-ID: <1991Apr02.054249.27643@looking.on.ca>
References: <63473@bbn.BBN.COM> <1991Apr01.052655.3549@looking.on.ca> <4082.27f77d68@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com>

Right now smart cards are doing that, but we are in the infancy of the
network world.   There are lots of people, like us, who are concerned, and
we will work to make it happen.  We're the people coding up this stuff, and
we do have a bigger say than other "activists" might.

What I want is to find solutions that don't attack fundamental rights in
the name of "fear of the computer."   Many people seem to react by saying
that we should define laws that let you copyright your personal data,
or forbid people making databases of entirely public information.

I consider database publishers to be publishers, and I think that
"congress shall make no law abridging the freedom..." of publishers.
(That's the U.S. version.  In my country, it's not so precisely worded.)

I consider privacy important but freedom to not live in a privacy
protecting police state is also important.

I have put forward two solutions that need little in the way of limitations
on freedom.   One is default implicit contracts of confidentiality
on most transactions.   The other is the automatic use of different
aliases for all your network activities.

These all rely on a pluralistic, privatized world where you deal with
hundreds or thousands of data agencies and no one agency has all the
data on you, or, if you use your aliases properly, even knows it does
if it happens to!

Yes, it also depends on reliable and unbreakable public key encryption
and digital signature.   Right now we think we can get those, but
who knows what new results in number theory will come by tomorrow.

Anyway, it can be done without draconian law.  If you propose such laws,
I would like to hear why you think it can't be done any other way.
I would hope that the burden of proof would be on you.
-- 
Brad Templeton, ClariNet Communications Corp. -- Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473
