Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of Control

Post by tommorris » Fri, Mar 31, 2017, 9:43 AM UTC

lucaspiller wrote: post #42

switch007 wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The UK's Home Secretary Amber Rudd, fives days ago said "WhatsApp must be accessible to authorities", following the Westminster attack. She summoned some big tech firms yesterday to tell them how unacceptable it is that the police can't read encrypted messages.

All this is going to do is invade the privacy of regular people, and force 'terrorists' to go off-the-grid which will make them even harder to track. The IRA were pretty good at terrorising without any kind of electronic communications - encrypted or not.

Post by corin_ » Fri, Mar 31, 2017, 10:09 AM UTC

tommorris wrote: post #51

lucaspiller wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All this is going to do is invade the privacy of regular people, and force 'terrorists' to go off-the-grid which will make them even harder to track. The IRA were pretty good at terrorising without any kind of electronic communications - encrypted or not.

ISIS have already built their own chat application, allegedly, and distribute the APK privately. If the government ban e2e crypto in apps like WhatsApp/Signal/Telegram, expect to see more such apps from groups who politicians can't exactly summon into their offices for a chat. https://techcrunch.com/2016/01/16/isis-app/

Post by hackermailman » Fri, Mar 31, 2017, 10:30 AM UTC

mc32 wrote: post #8

phreack wrote: post #5

So people have private ways to communicate, and sometimes they break the law by communicating forbidden stuff, hasn't that been a thing for ages? Why the sudden hate on Whatsapp, if there's a rise of law breaking messages, the root cause is elsewhere.

Probably due to fewer evidentiary "crumbs" left behind. No witnesses to meetings, conversation eavesdroppers or recorded calls --now everything is more or less deniable and irrefutable, unless one of the parties decides to double cross the other.

Post by billpg » Fri, Mar 31, 2017, 11:18 AM UTC

cm2187 wrote: post #41

throwaway287391 wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you honestly think that's a feasible solution? Who in their right mind would work for a company that doesn't allow them to bring their personal phone to work? Unless it were required by law, no company would do that to their white collar employees -- they'd all leave for a company that doesn't treat them like eight year olds. (I feel like this would never be suggested on HN if we were discussing software companies…

Mobile phones are banned on trading floors. It is just hard to enforce for the reasons you mention.

Post by na85 » Fri, Mar 31, 2017, 11:27 AM UTC

throwaway287391 wrote: post #28

hackuser wrote: post #18

Isn't the obvious solution to ban personal phones, or personal apps, at work? It's not hard.

Do you honestly think that's a feasible solution? Who in their right mind would work for a company that doesn't allow them to bring their personal phone to work? Unless it were required by law, no company would do that to their white collar employees -- they'd all leave for a company that doesn't treat them like eight year olds. (I feel like this would never be suggested on HN if we were discussing software companies…