[3448] in cryptography@c2.net mail archive
Re: IP: State Govt Will Use Datakey Smart Cards
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Enzo Michelangeli)
Sun Oct 11 23:32:26 1998
From: "Enzo Michelangeli" <em@who.net>
To: <cryptography@c2.net>
Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 11:21:13 +0800
Yes, but if the keys are generated in software there will always be
someone knowledgeable enough to inspect the source code, or, in the worst
case, reverse-engineer the application, detecting flaws or backdoors. Even
when that's unlikely, its mere possibility will be a useful deterrent
against
intentional tricks. With hardware devices, public analysis and review is
much more difficult.
Enzo
-----Original Message-----
From: Marc Horowitz <marc@cygnus.com>
To: Lucky Green <shamrock@netcom.com>
Cc: cryptography@c2.net <cryptography@c2.net>
Date: Monday, October 12, 1998 10:02 AM
Subject: Re: IP: State Govt Will Use Datakey Smart Cards
>"Lucky Green" <shamrock@netcom.com> writes:
>
>>> Now I believe that the key should never be generated in hardware
>>> you didn't design and build yourself. There is just too much room
>>> for virtually undetectable design errors, be they accidental or
>>> deliberate, that will dramatically reduce the keyspace.
>
>Once crypto becomes ubiquitous, most people will generate keys with
>hardware and/or software they did not design and build themselves.
>The vast majority of people will simply never understand cryptography
>well enough for them to evaluate what's going on. If we're lucky,
>they'll have someone they more or less trust to recommend the key
>generation system to them.
>
>It's important to keep in mind that we on this list are very much
>unlike the users we hope to eventually have.
>
> Marc
>
