Re: Anonymous browsing (was Re: Getting Back to our Radical Roots)

[Tim May <tcmay@got.net>]

At 3:07 PM -0700 6/20/97, Jeremey Barrett wrote:

>The cpunks are getting some help in this from the Naval Research Lab
>(although actually I think we're helping them not vice versa)
>because the military seems to want to be able to browse anonymously too.

I rather suspect the motives are more complicated than this.

It is an easy enough matter for anyone in the CIA or NSA or DIA or whatever
to get cutout accounts in any number of ISPs, either local or connected to
remotely in the usual ways. This lets them surf rapidly and quickly, and
with little traceability so long as they maintain an "air gap" between the
nyms.

"ddenning@nsa.gov" can become "witch666@aol.com" or "shill@clarke.net"
rather easily.

When I was at CFP a few months back, and NSA guy said he read the
Cypherpunks list regularly. And a CIA analyst who attended the Hackers
Conference recognized my name when I happened to sit down next to him at a
meal, and said his office often looked to the CP list for insights into how
various proposals would be met. I don't recall either of their names--I
wasn't that interested in tracking them--but I rather suspect their
subscriptions were under under other names or at least other domain names,
or forwarded directly off of other sites.

--Tim May


There's something wrong when I'm a felon under an increasing number of laws.
Only one response to the key grabbers is warranted: "Death to Tyrants!"
---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:----
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: 2^1398269     | black markets, collapse of governments.
"National borders aren't even speed bumps on the information superhighway."