Telegram protocol defeated. Authors are going to modify crypto-algorithm

It's funny that you mention politicians at the end of the post, because as I was reading your posts in this thread, I couldn't help but think you were feeding into the huge cable-newsification of this disagreement. It is what happens when a bunch of lookie-loo viewers want to be involved in the debate but can't keep up on the issues. I struggle to completely follow the tech here but my job occasionally brings me close enough to crypto that if nothing else I understand the huge disparity between the technical discussion and the superficial one at play here.

Attempts to fit this disagreement into the same oblique, non-existent, ideal behavior for a disagreement subverts the ability to productivity disagree and makes behavior worse overall. Your remedy is for them to not disagree. I take it differently. I want them to disagree, but I don't want anyone involved in the disagreement to dishonestly play to the masses. But that would involve conceding a point, and what would that do to the bottom line?

Focus on selling the TextSecure app and not looking to takeout anyone who has a different approach.

You mistakenly seem to think that TextSecure exists primarily for profit. It is obvious the aim is good crypto. They're playing a different ball game than Telegraph's freemium model, one where marketplace success doesn't determine if they implemented their crypto right. Promoting _that_ involves explaining why the Telegraph tech is deficient.

Back to the cable news analogy, in a post of yours further down the thread, you bring up what the right level of security is for this app. That's a good question, one moxie (I think) brought up days ago by pointing out they didn't have threat model and tptacek (I think) called them out for using nation-state actors as the adversary in selling the app. They played that card in technical criticism, you bringing it up here for goalpost shifting now that they're starting to look bad and you want to keep driving down the middle of the disagreement.

PS: I have no relationship with either party. I am a neutral observer that has his own opinions.

Oh, I know. You're playing into the US-politics detached observer rote well. You should know that the system adapted to account for that stance years ago. You're getting played as hard as everyone else.

What's unsafe and unproductive is when bozos jump in the pool, apparently ignorant or otherwise misrepresentative of the reality of how difficult it is to create a correct solution -- and confidently declare their implementations to be trustable.

If the messaging on Telegram had been, the world needs a secure messaging solution and we're committed to building it starting with this thing which we think is pretty good for XYZ, nobody would be objecting. Instead, these guys presented themselves as having solved a problem which is known to be difficult, and moreover using an unlikely method.

First, there's a risk the NSA is actually the one initiating those services.

Secondly, in cryptography, it's very hard if not impossible to effectively prove your messages are not read by someone else. Cryptography experts do not tend to work for people's interests. And if some do, the NSA has too many resources to just defeat those who try to not be listened to.

I understand the intention is noble, but if you release such a safe tool, the NSA will view it as a terrorist threat, because that's the job they have been given, and they will end up listening anyways.

I can't understand the paranoia about all this. If you're really afraid the NSA might use information against you, it's because you made political enemies, in this case, why use digital means of communication at all ?

I really tend to think it's being cool to use those cryptographic features, rather than anything else, and that's worrying.