NONE

[anonymous-remailer@shell.portal.com]

Fri, 25 Nov 94 20:20:01 CST Gary Jeffers <CCGARY@MIZZOU1.missouri.edu> wrote:

        What follows is an advertisement by the Privacy Digest people.
        These people have been around longer than 10 years.
[ snip ]
        Since these people are in Costa Rica, it will take more postage than
[ snip ]
        The copied text follows:
[ long advertisement for photocopied reports deleted ]


I am hoping for a reply from Tim May (who's been absent for some days now?)
and especially Black Unicorn; I know neither but have a gut feeling one of
them would have a comment or two.

My own 2 cents:

1.  As a rule, while lots of Cypherpunks are no doubt interested in related
themes (privacy in general, for instance, or liberty) please do not point
entire texts to the list.  Instead, sum it up and explain where those of us
with a yen to see more can get the full information.  This is not a flame
to you personally, Gary, but please heed it.  Otherwise you are flooding us...

2.  Dealing with your post specifically, I have to ask for your qualifications.
I happen to know this particular neck of the woods fairly well, as does Mr
Unicorn, and I know that Williams in Costa Rica has not been around for 10
years. In fact, on the same address and phone number, he has not even been
around for 1! (He did have other phones there before, granted).

3.  While not wanting to single out Williams (the "Privacy Digest people" as
you call them) because I have nothing more than a hunch, I want to let the
list know that there has been at least one US Government sting operated out
of a Costa Rica front address.  Also, another sting used the corporate name
of Financial Engineering as Arnie (Offshore) mentioned about a month ago.

4.  The stuff that Williams sells -- and that you advertised to the list -- is
not worth a lot of money.  His services, if they are for real and not a sting,
are good, but they are not organized efficiently and they are slow (I actually
opened a test account with him so I am qualified) which means that even if he
is not in bed with Sam you probably still ought to take your cash elsewhere.

5.  If you do go ahead and decide to buy his programs, be aware that their lega
advice is highly "inventive" and that much of their information is untrue or
at least misleading.  On more complex subjects (such as 2nd "banking passports"
he whips up 20 halfbaked pages of false info where in fact the subject needs to
be treated in at least 200 pages, thoroughly researched. And where the leading
authority in this field is in fact on his 9th edition now, totalling 400+ pp.

6.  Finally, some of Williams stuff is out of date.  Worse, at least one report
does not exist - and that is the one that would point to most government heat
if you order it.  Just out of idle curiosity, I had my foreign lawyer order so
that was how I found out.  If you order it (and if Williams is a front, or just
if the Evil Empire is watching his mail; which IMO is even *more* likely) this
mere fact will trigger an extensive immediate FBI investigation of who you are.

While I hate to say it, there is currently to my knowledge no easy turn-key
one-stop-stop "Where to go to break the law" foreign operators that I would
trust.  If you want true privacy, carve it out for yourself, don't rely on
someone who advertises a lot and sells photocopied reports to give it to you.

BTW, the services Williams are offering are sorely needed -- when they can be
trusted.  (Fiduciary accounts for everybody is one service, anonymous foreign
credit cards is another, and several of his services could come under the
heading of benevolent moneylaundering).
One day you will see them coming from somewhere else, with a more professional
twist and from guys who earn their bread off the fees, not off photocopies.
I can outlike how such a private 'parallel-bank' is going to work if asked.

For now, I prefer to post anonymously.
I would be interested in getting a pseudonymous account of the kind described
by 'Nobody' on Friday but would want a better place that mg5n to set it up.


"Capt'n Bob"




-----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
Version: 2.6

mQCNAy7W3GoAAAEEAMQqHR+mHowjb7JsVxkCRCg0iM3uitOS2cIcctVIuXVJW6ou
iumOw2zMURT5LFgGD2XHr7sre8jm9VUGWwFAaRTJB85Kj4Vy2/dGId2kK7Z/YsrE
tVQDw75I8UYa3//PS5C2xCZROz5YHVEjvGcl3QqRLw8xVsgG+OZrkMibcPMNAAUR
tBpUaGUtQ2FwdGFpbiAoIkNhcHQnbiBCb2IiKQ==
=yrC+