Conspiracy Stuff: Ron Brown's death and Crypto ...

[Ernest Hua <hua@chromatic.com>]

Too much fun for the conspiracy buffs ...

Did Ron Brown's plane really fly off course due to pilot error?

No, don't even bother replying to me on this matter.  I'm just
up too late, and I tossing this one out there on a whim ...

Ern

-------- INCLUDED ARTICLE (From: New York Times "CyberTimes"):

Commerce Department Urges
Easing of Encryption Controls

By Bloomberg Business News

WASHINGTON - The Commerce Department will recommend easing export
controls on encryption software after a study by the department and
the National Security Agency found that American companies are being
hurt, Commerce Secretary Ronald H. Brown said last week.

Such a move may pit Mr. Brown against the military and intelligence
agencies, setting the stage for a White House battle over one of the
last computer technologies still covered by export controls.

"I'm interested in promoting American exports," Mr. Brown said in an
interview on Friday. "If your foreign competitors are exporting
products with encryption capability and you are not, that puts you at
a tremendous competitive disadvantage."

The Government bans United States companies from exporting encryption
software - hard-to-break computer codes that turn information, like
files and credit card numbers, into indecipherable material that can
be sent across computer networks without fear of tampering.

The United States justifies the export restrictions by saying
law-enforcement agencies would be hamstrung in their efforts to stop
terrorists or spies from using encryption to send information
worldwide.