Re: Excellent, Mr. Paul Tiger (more)

[Paul E Condon <pecondon@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Sat, Apr 01, 2006 at 09:48:33AM -0700, Paul E Condon wrote:
> On Fri, Mar 31, 2006 at 09:50:48PM -0700, Some Guy wrote:
> > Rockwell was the chip maker for many modems of that era. Signetics had a
> > license to produce similar chips from Rockwell, but they weren't used that
> > much. National Semiconductor had similar functionality, but didn't sell
> > well.
> > The last time that I played with any modems in a lab setting was in 1997. I
> > have no clue what is going on these days.
> > 
> > I once listened to a lecture on telecom security at NIST from a NSA engineer
> > who stated that the only secure computer was one that was set in a block of
> > concrete at the bottom of the ocean. At the time I was amused. No longer.
> 
> People who work for NSA are part of the National Security apparatus. They have
> a special attitude towards information about security:
> 
>  If you aren't getting information that you feel you should have,
> never let on to outsiders that you have a problem. Let them believe
> that you're doing just fine.
> 
>  If you have a way to get at some information that others want to keep
> from you, never brag.
> 
> People who are not basically spies, but have to worry about spys, are a 
> much better source of 'how to' information. They are inclined to talk
> more. Maybe even talk too much.
> 
> But for telecom in particular, nothing I've heard indicates that its anything
> but a *very* hard problem. I just think that a good secure location can 
> be created that is more accessable than the interior of a block of concrete
> at the bottom of the ocean. 
> 

Also:
 For elections, the security problem is much easier than for NSA or
LLNL. If the information about who won leaks out, no real damage is
done. We should only really care if the information is secretly
corrupted, and the bad data is substituted for the good inside the
election system. Even in telecom, this is a much harder problem for
the bad guys.

Think about it. Who really believes that NSA ever successfully
interposed itself into a cellphone conversation between to Al Quaeda
operatives and had them both believing that they were still talking to
each other when in reality they were both talking to guys in a NSA
bunker? If you find him, I have a deal on black helicopters that I'd
like to tell him about.

-- 
Paul E Condon           
pecondon@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx