IP: who runs anonymous remailers

[Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

Please note I cannot verify this note but it sounds feasible ... djf








From: Viktor Mayer-Schoenberger
Information Law Project
Austrian Institute for Legal Policy




I attended last weeks "Information, National Policies, and International
Infrastructure" Symposium at Harvard Law School, organized by the Global
Information Infrastructure Commission, the Kennedy School and the
Institute for Information Technology Law & Policy of Harvard Law School.


During the presentation by Paul Strassmann, National Defense University
and William Marlow, Science Applications International Corporation,
entitled "Anonymous Remailers as Risk-Free International Infoterrorists"
the questions was raised from audience (Professor Chaarles Nesson,
Harvard LAw School) - in a rather extended debate - whether the CIA and
similar government agencies are involved in running anonymous remailers
as this would be a perfect target to scan possibly illegal messages.


Both presenters explicitly acknowledged that a number of anonymous
remnailers in the US are run by government agencies scanning traffic.
Marlow said that the government runs at least a dozen remailers and that
the most popular remailers in France and Germany are run by the
respective government agencies in these countries. In addition they
mentioned that the NSA has successfully developed systems to break
encrypted messages below 1000 bit of key length and strongly suggested
to use at least 1024 bit keys. They said that they semselves use 1024
bit keys.


I ask Marlos afterwards if these comments were off or on record, he
paused then said that he can be quoted.


So I thought I pass that on. It seems interesting enough, don't you
think?


Best


Viktor Mayer-Schoenberger
Information Law Project
Austrian Institute for Legal Policy