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TeleMessage, used by Trump officials, can access plaintext chat logs

micahflee.com

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Re: TeleMessage, used by Trump officials, can access plaintext chat logs

#21

Post by nicce »

XorNot wrote: post #9
proactivesvcs wrote: post #5

I'd find it useful if I could access my Signal chat logs in plaintext. The software offers no facility to do this on any platform, and on Desktop the programs that have allowed me to take proper backups are (by necessity) a moving target because of changes to the database, so I am constantly having to get around to updating them and occasionally even that's a pain.

It'd also be useful if backups on Android actually streamed somewhere off the phone so they could be meaningfully appended to, kept. Or handled per channel (i.e. my baby pictures channel with family).

That would hit the Google One revenue if people would use alternatives…

But also, it must have something to do with law enforcement. On the other hand, Google may say that forensic investigation of phone is harder (if no jailbreak), but on the otherhand it is easier to hand over the data behind the scenes from the remote cloud.

Backups are not E2EE by default (user can enable, so they have an argument), so in most cases law enforcement can access WhatsApp messages, SMS messages and anything else without a problem. Many people don’t think about this, and defaults matter.

Re: TeleMessage, used by Trump officials, can access plaintext chat logs

#24

Post by ziddoap »

tptacek wrote: post #10

Isn't that the point?

It's supposed to be available in plaintext to the end customer (government), at their secured archive, but not available in plaintext to TeleMessage.

>TeleMessage lies about this in their marketing material, claiming that TM SGNL supports "End-to-End encryption from the mobile phone through to the corporate archive."

Surely someone of your expertise and renown recognizes this difference.

Re: TeleMessage, used by Trump officials, can access plaintext chat logs

#26

Post by fnordpiglet »

Aurornis wrote: post #14
tptacek wrote: post #10

Isn't that the point?

No, the point is for the government to have access the plaintext after it is securely delivered to an approved archive location, not TeleMessage having access on AWS-hosted servers exposed to the public internet. TeleMessage pitched their service as using end-to-end encryption of the message into the corporate archive. > End-to-End encryption from the mobile phone through to the corporate archive Apparently the plain…

I doubt that’s the point either. The government should have cipher text they are able to decrypt in an approved archive location with rigorously managed key material and a careful cryptographically variable chain of custody from its inception. Plain text should never factor into this.

Re: TeleMessage, used by Trump officials, can access plaintext chat logs

#27

Post by iAMkenough »

Aurornis wrote: post #14
tptacek wrote: post #10

Isn't that the point?

No, the point is for the government to have access the plaintext after it is securely delivered to an approved archive location, not TeleMessage having access on AWS-hosted servers exposed to the public internet. TeleMessage pitched their service as using end-to-end encryption of the message into the corporate archive. > End-to-End encryption from the mobile phone through to the corporate archive Apparently the plain…

Why would they need to hire a foreign Israeli firm for that?

Through this procurement decision, the government has displayed gross incompetence.

Re: TeleMessage, used by Trump officials, can access plaintext chat logs

#28

Post by JumpCrisscross »

proactivesvcs wrote: post #5

I'd find it useful if I could access my Signal chat logs in plaintext. The software offers no facility to do this on any platform, and on Desktop the programs that have allowed me to take proper backups are (by necessity) a moving target because of changes to the database, so I am constantly having to get around to updating them and occasionally even that's a pain.

> I'd find it useful if I could access my Signal chat logs in plaintext

I'd probably also find it useful if I could access your Signal chat logs in plaintext. That's the problem.

Re: TeleMessage, used by Trump officials, can access plaintext chat logs

#29

Post by walterbell »

XorNot wrote: post #9
proactivesvcs wrote: post #5

I'd find it useful if I could access my Signal chat logs in plaintext. The software offers no facility to do this on any platform, and on Desktop the programs that have allowed me to take proper backups are (by necessity) a moving target because of changes to the database, so I am constantly having to get around to updating them and occasionally even that's a pain.

It'd also be useful if backups on Android actually streamed somewhere off the phone so they could be meaningfully appended to, kept. Or handled per channel (i.e. my baby pictures channel with family).

PhotoSync can incrementally backup iOS/Android photos to self-hosted or cloud storage targets, with optional encryption, https://www.photosync-app.com/support/encryption

Re: TeleMessage, used by Trump officials, can access plaintext chat logs

#30

Post by JumpCrisscross »

tptacek wrote: post #10

Isn't that the point?

> Isn't that the point?

The point is making SecDef's communications, including scramble orders, available to whoever can find a TeleMessage employee who will cave to a bribe or blackmail?

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