How the Gov't. "Deputizes" Corporations to Enforce Laws

[tcmay@got.net (Timothy C. May)]

At 4:27 AM 1/2/96, Felix Lee wrote:

>compare with software piracy.  when was the last time a kid in your
>neighborhood was busted for unlicensed copying of software?  and
>software is big business, lots of suits and $$$.  they can try to make
>disassemblers illegal, but it's not likely to succeed.

Though I generally agree with the point that laws can and are skirted (I've
argued this too many time myself to repeat it again here), this point about
software piracy needs to be critiqued.

The software piracy laws are usually targetted at _corporations_. The
Software Publisher's Association has very effectively caused corporations
to launch extensive anti-piracy programs (including the very audits of disk
drives that so many on this list think is a violation of their human
rights).

As with the drug laws, which corporations have been "deputized" (=
threatened) to enforce via drug testing, urine tests, random searches, etc.

Whit Diffie has been making this point for several years, that the drug
laws may not be very enforceable on street corners, but by threatening
corporations with loss of contracts, shutdown of plants, seizure of assets,
and even criminal prosecution if they fail to take approved steps to create
a "drug-free workplace," the long arm of the law is supplemented by
corporate enforcement. The "War on Drugs," "Just Say No," and "FooCorp
Maintains a Drug-Free Workplace" sorts of campaigns.

(When I was at Intel, 1974-86, nobody cared what drugs were used in the
evenings, weekends, etc., so long as one did not come to work stoned or
otherwise impaired. Now, like most other large corporations, there are
posters up on the walls with childish slogans about the dangers of
"substance abuse," extensive drug tests for new employees (not sure about
existing employees), employee training seminars devoted to substance abuse,
etc. Not because Andy Grove sees a drug problem, but because of the drum
beat of "Just Say No!" hysteria and the threats of government sanctions.
Corporations have been enlisted into the War on (Some) Drugs.)

The same applies to software piracy. Nobody expects casual, personal
copying to stop, but anyone in a company can anonymously narc out the
company to the SPA and law enforcement. The SPA and cops may then decide to
"make an example" out of the company, launching raids, detailed audits of
all machines, and the levying of huge fines for copies of software which
are thought to be illegal. (This course of action seems to happen regularly
in the Bay Area...the press is usually invited along or tipped off, and the
evening news shows some company shut down for a day as SPA and law
enforcement agents carry off dozens of bootlegged copies of WordPerfect and
Excel.)

The drug and software piracy cases give us some hints about how
restrictions on "illegal crypto" are likely to be enforced.

The "casual user" will not be targetted. He can pretty much expect to see
no effective enforcement. However, the Lockheeds and Apples will face
sanctions, loss of contracts, asset forfeiture, etc., unless they take
"positive steps" to ensure that PGP, BlackNet, non-GAKked crypto, anonymous
remailers, and other illegal programs are not being used on their systems.
This will entail packet sniffers checking for the usual signs, audits of
employee workstations and PCs, posted policies on "cybersubstance abuse"
and its dangers, etc. (I'm only slightly joking here.)

While this will still not stop all crypto use--just as tax evasion
continues, drug use is rampant, and software piracy is done to some extent
by nearly everyone--it will halt certain types of rapid deployment, pushing
crypto use to the fringes and away from mainstream use. It will terrorize
the Intels and Merrill Lynches of the country into being enforcers of the
laws.

This is how things are being done in these waning years of the 20th Century.

--Tim May

We got computers, we're tapping phone lines, we know that that ain't allowed.
---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:----
Timothy C. May              | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money,
tcmay@got.net  408-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero
W.A.S.T.E.: Corralitos, CA  | knowledge, reputations, information markets,
Higher Power: 2^756839 - 1  | black markets, collapse of governments.
"National borders aren't even speed bumps on the information superhighway."