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Whistleblower Binney says the NSA has dossiers on nearly every US citizen

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Re: Whistleblower Binney says the NSA has dossiers on nearly every US citizen

#5
post #2

Well of course they do. I would be really surprised if they didn't. That's why we should ENCRYPT EVERYTHING possible. Use HTTPS as much as you can.

I have a question about this -- maybe I'm ignorant. But using https without self-signed keys actually allows the government to peer into your communications, doesn't it? We are worried about third parties stealing your data between you and your bank for example. A bank might be a bad example as they probably already have access to their databases for compliance reasons. Can't the US government ask for the keys of these US based certificate authorities?

My point being is that https is probably equivalent to plain text when it comes to government surveillance.

Re: Whistleblower Binney says the NSA has dossiers on nearly every US citizen

#7
post #2

Well of course they do. I would be really surprised if they didn't. That's why we should ENCRYPT EVERYTHING possible. Use HTTPS as much as you can.

That's bringing a knife to a tank fight, my man.

Better, IMO, to just assume they read and listen to everything digital, and work around it.

Re: Whistleblower Binney says the NSA has dossiers on nearly every US citizen

#8
post #6

Sure, they have all data about someone. But, what is the use? It is like searching a needle in a haystack.

Until you piss off or catch the eye of someone with access to it. Then you'll find out just how quickly your particular needle can be found in that haystack.

Re: Whistleblower Binney says the NSA has dossiers on nearly every US citizen

#10

Ethics, morality and legality aside, I'd be really curious to see what information is actually stored in these "dossiers", besides (presumably) one's name, address, and other details that other branches of the government legitimately have.

Oh, don't worry: ethics, morality and legality are being very much set aside.
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