Xref: utzoo rec.radio.shortwave:7615 rec.radio.amateur.policy:454 rec.radio.cb:370 sci.electronics:20735 alt.activism:14558
Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!apple!xanadu!jeff
From: jeff@markets.amix.com (Jeff Crilly N6ZFX)
Newsgroups: rec.radio.shortwave,rec.radio.amateur.policy,rec.radio.cb,sci.electronics,alt.activism
Subject: Re: Task Force recommends amending ECPA (long)
Message-ID: <1991Jun7.182348.9032@markets.amix.com>
Date: 7 Jun 91 18:23:48 GMT
References: <25147@well.sf.ca.us> <2371@atlas.tegra.COM> <1991Jun6.044639.20039@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu>
Distribution: usa
Organization: American Information Exchange Corporation, Palo Alto, CA
Lines: 48

In article <1991Jun6.044639.20039@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu> phil@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Phil Howard KA9WGN) writes:
>vail@tegra.COM (Johnathan Vail) writes:
>
>>My summary:
>>
>> 	1) Pass a stupid unenforceable law.
>>	2) Pass another law to warn people that the first law doesn't
>>		work.
>>	3) Wish that technology would make radio private in the first
>>		place because the other laws don't really do anything
>>		about privacy of radio.
>
>This technology is already known and exists.  It's not quite as cheap
>as it could be, and would be if it were part of the wider consumer use
>of radio spectrum (e.g. cellular).
>
>If there is going to be a law passed, let it be one that requires the
>use of encrypted radio communications as the only means to achieve
>private communications.  Require it absolutely for commom carriers.
>-- 

But if communications is encrypted, then the government would 
have no way of listening in whe the courts allow them to.  Of course,
the common carrier could do the encrypting and have the technology to
provide the government with "decryption" devices.  

Alot of the followup posts have been focusing on the issue of privacy
from government, e.g. "folks don't want the government to be allowed
to use what you say on the cordless-phone|baby-monitor|cell-phone to
be used against you".  Actually I see it as the government trying to
figure out how they can pass a law that makes the users of these
devices happy by giving them a sense of privacy.  IMHO, the real
problem is folks monitoring corporate-deals|unfaithful-wives|stock-
deals-in-progress and taking the information and selling it or using
it for blackmail purposes.

If the government can't assure users that their conversations are
reasonably private then the users that require reasonably private
communications are not going to use the technology.  By "reasonable",
I mean, for example, that everyone knows (or should know) that
government *can* monitor your conersations (e.g. tap your phone)
if they think your doing something illegal and that other individuals
aren't "listening in".

I see the portion of the ECPA that deals with cellular as a 
pacifier for the cellular providers and users.

Jeff