[3288] in cryptography@c2.net mail archive
RE: "Internet Cryptography" Special Session at NISSC
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Rick Smith)
Tue Sep 15 17:35:18 1998
Date: Tue, 15 Sep 1998 10:48:29 -0500
To: <Gregory.Perry@netsec.net>, "Jim Gillogly" <jim@acm.org>,
<cryptography@c2.net>
From: Rick Smith <rick_smith@securecomputing.com>
In-Reply-To: <000101bde042$63192ea0$6600a8c0@gvperry-laptop.internal.net
sec.net>
At 08:47 PM 9/14/98 -0400, Gregory Perry wrote:
>Secure Computing makes no bones about the fact that it loves the military
and
>government cash cow, hence their need to constantly modify the SCTC product
>line according to the latest government trends (escrow, GAK, recovery etc.).
This information is somewhat out of date. While it's true that many here
continue to work on government contracts, upper management (Jim Waxman the
CEO, and his VPs) actively discourages it.
It's one of those free market things -- the rate of return on traditional
government contracting is held to an artificial level by law, while the
rate of return on products is controlled by market forces. So you at least
have the potential to make more money on products.
Regarding GAK, we recently had discussions with senior management about
what SCC's stated policy would be on the subject. The general political
attitude, endorsed by senior management, was to oppose government
interference like GAK, but to also build the strongest products we could,
given legal restrictions. SCC is a company and approaches the issue from a
product and marketing standpoint, not a political one.
Rick.
smith@securecomputing.com
