[free-sklyarov] A reply from amyg@publishers.org

[Julian T. J. Midgley]

On Fri, 27 Jul 2001, David Haworth wrote:
>
> Dear Mr. Haworth:
>
> AAP stands by its press release of July 22 supporting the anticircumvention
> provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and commending the
> Department of Justice for acting on its responsibility to enforce the DMCA
> in the matter of Dmitry Sklyarov.
>
> In response to those who attempt to justify circumventing, or trafficking in
> devices that circumvent, encryption and other technological measures that
> protect copyright in the digital environment,  AAP urges them to carefully
> consider how their arguments would apply to precisely the same activities in
> connection with encryption and other technological measures used to protect
> privacy in that same environment.

This is just ludicrous.  Last time I looked, it was a standing tenet of
the security community that secure encryption protocols are best evolved
through careful peer review and public scrutiny.  The reaction amonsgt
cryptographers to someone who successfully circumvents an encryption
algorithm is "oh, ****, we screwed that one up, better get back to the
drawing board", not "Oh you evil man, quick, let us throw you in jail
before your idea gets spread too far!".

And to the best of my knowledge, there's no law at all that prevents you
trafficking in devices designed to cirumvent encryption.

Well done, the AAP, you shot yourselves in the foot quite beautifully with
that little analogy.

I urge those members of the AAP who have publically stated their
opposition to the DMCA to resign their membership (with a press-release to
that effect, of course), since it's clear that the AAP still haven't got
the message.

Julian Midgley

-- 
Julian T. J. Midgley                    http://www.xenoclast.org
Cambridge, England.                       PGP Key ID: 0xBCC7863F