[liberationtech] Fwd: [WhatsApp backdoor allows snooping on encrypted messages]

[carlo von lynX]

On Fri, Jan 13, 2017 at 07:26:29PM -0500, Sebastian Benthall wrote:
> https://whispersystems.org/blog/there-is-no-whatsapp-backdoor/
> > > https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jan/13/

I've also read http://www.golem.de/news/schluesselaustausch-aufregung-um-angebliche-whatsapp-backdoor-1701-125571.html
and https://tobi.rocks/pdf/whatsappslides.pdf
and to me it seems like all of the articles are
technically describing the same procedure.
The difference is only in the framing.

For Facebook it is a necessity that people not be
bothered by key changes, for anyone in the libtech
business it is an alarming signal that MITM is
technicaly possible by default and users must be
specifically aware of the issue to avoid it.

But why is anyone even expecting any true privacy
from an American proprietary product? Have the
PRISM and MUSCULAR programs suddenly been discontinued?
Has Freedom Act amended NSLs also for non-Americans?
How could Facebook afford not to pump everything they
can get into XKEYSCORE as before? Why did the European
Supreme Court rule that the US is not a safe harbor
for EU citizen data? Did I miss any recent developments?

Is it the general strategy to have people debate whether
there is a backdoor when by law Whatsapp MUST have some
backdoor?

-- 
  E-mail is public! Talk to me in private using encryption:
         http://loupsycedyglgamf.onion/LynX/
          irc://loupsycedyglgamf.onion:67/lynX
         https://psyced.org:34443/LynX/