diff --git a/03-Cypherpunks/03-Cypherpunks.md b/03-Cypherpunks/03-Cypherpunks.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..f0cb4d0 --- /dev/null +++ b/03-Cypherpunks/03-Cypherpunks.md @@ -0,0 +1,603 @@ +3. Cypherpunks -- History, Organization, Agenda + + 3.1. copyright + THE CYPHERNOMICON: Cypherpunks FAQ and More, Version 0.666, + 1994-09-10, Copyright Timothy C. May. All rights reserved. + See the detailed disclaimer. Use short sections under "fair + use" provisions, with appropriate credit, but don't put your + name on my words. + + 3.2. SUMMARY: Cypherpunks -- History, Organization, Agenda + 3.2.1. Main Points + - Cypherpunks formed in September, 1992 + - formed at an opportune time, with PGP 2.0, Clipper, etc. + hitting + - early successes: Cypherpunks remailers, publicity + 3.2.2. Connections to Other Sections + 3.2.3. Where to Find Additional Information + - "Wired," issue 1.2, had a cover story on Cypherpunks. + - "Whole Earth Review," Summer 1993, had a long article on + crypto and Cypherpunks (included in the book "Out of + Control," by Kevin Kelly. + - "Village Voice," August 6th (?). 1993, had cover story on + "Crypto Rebels" (also reprinted in local weeklies) + - and numerous articles in various magazines + 3.2.4. Miscellaneous Comments + - the best way to get a feel for the List is to simply read + it for a while; a few months should do. + + 3.3. The Cypherpunks Group and List + 3.3.1. What is it? + + Formal Rules, Charter, etc.? + - no formal rules or charter + - no agreed-upon mission + 3.3.2. "Who are the Cypherpunks?" + - A mix of about 500-700 + + Can find out who by sending message to majordomo@toad.com + with the message body text "who cypherpunks" (no quotes, of + course). + - Is this a privacy flaw? Maybe. + - Lots of students (they have the time, the Internet + accounts). Lots of computer science/programming folks. Lots + of libertarians. + - quote from Wired article, and from "Whole Earth Review" + 3.3.3. "How did the Cypherpunks group get started?" + + History? + - Discussions between Eric Hughes and me, led to Eric's + decision to host a gathering + + First meeting was, by coincidence, the same week that PGP + 2.0 was released...we all got copies that day + - morning session on basics + - sitting on the floor + + afternoon we played the "Crypto Game" + - remailers, digital money, information for sale, etc. + - John Gilmore offered his site to host a mailing list, and + his company's offices to hold monthly meetings + - The mailing list began almost immediately + - The Name "Cypherpunks"? + 3.3.4. "Should I join the Cypherpunks mailing list?" + - If you are reading this, of course, you are most likely on + the Cypherpunks list already and this point is moot--you + may instead be asking if you should_leave_ the List! + - Only if you are prepared to handle 30-60 messages a day, + with volumes fluctuating wildly + 3.3.5. "How can I join the Cypherpunk mailing list?" + - send message to "majordomo@toad.com" with a _body_ text of + "subscribe cypherpunks" (no quote marks in either, of + course). + 3.3.6. "Membership?" + - about 500-700 at any given time + - many folks join, are overwhelmed, and quit + - other groups: Austin, Colorado, Boston, U.K. + 3.3.7. "Why are there so many libertarians on the Cypherpunks list?" + + The same question is often asked about the Net in general. + Lots of suggested reasons: + - A list like Cypherpunks is going to have privacy and + freedom advocates. Not all privacy advocates are + libertarians (e.g., they may want laws restricting data + collection), but many are. And libertarians naturally + gravitate to causes like ours. + - Net grew anarchically, with little control. This appeals + to free-wheeling types, used to making their own choices + and building their own worlds. + - Libertarians are skeptical of central control structures, + as are most computer programming types. They are + skeptical that a centrally-run control system can + coordinate the needs and desires of people. (They are of + course more than just "skeptical" about this.) + - In any case, there's not much of a coherent "opposition + camp" to the anarcho-capitalist, libertarian ideology. + Forgive me for saying this, my non-libertarian friends on + the list, but most non-libertarian ideologies I've seen + expressed on the list have been fragmentary, isolated, and + not coherent...comments about "how do we take care of the + poor?" and Christian fundamentalism, for example. If there + is a coherent alternative to a basically libertarian + viewpoint, we haven't seen it on the list. + - (Of course, some might say that the libertarians outshout + the alternatives...I don't think this is really so.) + 3.3.8. "How did the mailing list get started?" + - Hugh Daniel, Eric Hughes, and I discussed this the day + after the first meeting + - mailing list brought together diverse interests + - How to hoin? + 3.3.9. "How did Cypherpunks get so much early publicity?" + - started at the right time, just as PGP was gaining + popularity, as plans for key escrow were being laid (I + sounded an alarm in October, 1992, six months before the + Clipper announcement), and just as "Wired" was preparing + its first issue + - Kevin Kelly and Steven Levy attended some of our early + meetings, setting the stage for very favorable major + stories in "Wired" (issue 1.2, the cover story), and "Whole + Earth Review" (Summer, 1993) + - a niche for a "renegade" and "monkey-wrenching" group, with + less of a Washington focus + - publicity in "Wired," "The Whole Earth Review," "The + Village Voice" + + Clipper bombshell occupied much of our time, with some + effect on policy + - climate of repudiation + - links to EFF, CPSR, etc. + 3.3.10. "Why the name?" + - Jude Milhon nicknames us + - cypherpunkts? (by analogy with Mikropunkts, microdots) + 3.3.11. "What were the early meetings like?" + - cypherspiel, Crypto Anarchy Game + 3.3.12. "Where are places that I can meet other Cypherpunks?" + - physical meetings + - start your own...pizza place, classroom + + other organizations + - + + "These kind of meetings (DC 2600 meeting at Pentagon City + Mall, 1st Fri. of + - every month in the food court, about 5-7pm or so) might + be good places for + - local cypherpunks gatherings as well. I'm sure there + are a lot of other + - such meetings, but the DC and Baltimore ones are the + ones I know of. + - (note that the DC area already meets...) + - Hackers, raves + - regional meetings + 3.3.13. "Is the Cypherpunks list monitored? Has it been infiltrated?" + - Unknown. It wouldn't be hard for anyone to be monitoring + the list. + - As to infiltration, no evidence for this. No suspicious + folks showing up at the physical meetings, at least so far + as I can see. (Not a very reliable indication.) + 3.3.14. "Why isn't there a recruiting program to increase the number + of Cypherpunks?" + - Good question. The mailing list reached about 500 + subscribers a year or so ago and has remained relatively + constant since then; many subscribers learned of the list + and its address in the various articles that appeared. + - Informal organizations often level out in membership + because no staff exists to publicize, recruit, etc. And + size is limited because a larger group loses focus. So, + some stasis is achieved. For us, it may be at the 400-700 + level. It seems unlikely that list membership would ever + get into the tens of thousands. + 3.3.15. "Why have there been few real achievements in crypto + recently?" + + Despite the crush of crypto releases--the WinPGPs, + SecureDrives, and dozen other such programs--the fact is + that most of these are straightforward variants on what I + think have been the two major product classes to be + introduced in the last several years" + - PGP, and variants. + - Remailers, and variants. + - These two main classes account for about 98% of all product- + or version-oriented debate on the Net, epitomized by the + zillions of "Where can I find PGP2.6ui for the Amiga?" + sorts of posts. + + Why is this so? Why have these dominated? What else is + needed? + + First, PGP gave an incredible impetus to the whole issue + of public use of crypto. It brought crypto to the masses, + or at least to the Net-aware masses. Second, the nearly + simultaneous appearance of remailers (the Kleinpaste/Julf- + style and the Cypherpunks "mix"-style) fit in well with + the sudden awareness about PGP and crypto issues. And + other simultaneous factors appeared: + - the appearance of "Wired" and its spectacular success, + in early 1993 + - the Clipper chip firestorm, beginning in April 1993 + - the Cypherpunks group got rolling in late 1992, + reaching public visibility in several articles in 1993. + (By the end of '93, we seemed to be a noun, as Bucky + might've said.) + + But why so little progress in other important areas? + - digital money, despite at least a dozen reported + projects, programs (only a few of which are really + anything like Chaum's "digital cash") + - data havens, information markets, etc. + - money-laundering schemes, etc. + + What could change this? + - Mosaic, WWW, Web + - A successful digital cash effort + + 3.4. Beliefs, Goals, Agenda + 3.4.1. "Is there a set of beliefs that most Cypherpunks support?" + + There is nothing official (not much is), but there is an + emergent, coherent set of beliefs which most list members + seem to hold: + * that the government should not be able to snoop into our + affairs + * that protection of conversations and exchanges is a basic + right + * that these rights may need to be secured through + _technology_ rather than through law + * that the power of technology often creates new political + realities (hence the list mantra: "Cypherpunks write + code") + + Range of Beliefs + - Many are libertarian, most support rights of privacy, + some are more radical in apppoach + 3.4.2. "What are Cypherpunks interested in?" + - privacy + - technology + - encryition + - politics + - crypto anarchy + - digital money + - protocols + 3.4.3. Personal Privacy and Collapse of Governments + - There seem to be two main reasons people are drawn to + Cypherpunks, besides the general attractiveness of a "cool" + group such as ours. The first reason is _personal privacy_. + That is, tools for ensuring privacy, protection from a + surveillance society, and individual choice. This reason is + widely popular, but is not always compelling (after all, + why worry about personal privacy and then join a list that + has been identified as a "subversive" group by the Feds? + Something to think about.) + - The second major is personal liberty through reducing the + power of governments to coerce and tax. Sort of a digital + Galt's Gulch, as it were. Libertarians and + anarchocapitalists are especially drawn to this vision, a + vision which may bother conventional liberals (when they + realize strong crypto means things counter to welfare, + AFDC, antidiscrimination laws....). + - This second view is more controversial, but is, in my + opinion, what really powers the list. While others may + phrase it differently, most of us realize we are on to + something that will change--and already is changing--the + nature of the balance of power between individuals and + larger entities. + 3.4.4. Why is Cypherpunks called an "anarchy"? + - Anarchy means "without a leader" (head). Much more common + than people may think. + - The association with bomb-throwing "anarchists" is + misleading. + 3.4.5. Why is there no formal agenda, organization, etc.? + - no voting, no organization to administer such things + - "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" + - and it's how it all got started and evolved + - also, nobody to arrest and hassle, no nonsense about + filling out forms and getting tax exemptions, no laws about + campaign law violations (if we were a formal group and + lobbied against Senator Foo, could be hit with the law + limiting "special interests," conceivably) + 3.4.6. How are projects proposed and completed? + - If an anarchy, how do things get done? + - The way most things get done: individual actions and market + decisions. + 3.4.7. Future Needs for Cyberspace + + Mark Pesci's ideas for VR and simulations + - distributed, high bandwidth + - a billion users + - spatial ideas....coordinates...servers...holographic + models + - WWW plus rendering engine = spatial VR (Library of + Congress) + - "The Labyrinth" + + says to avoid head-mounted displays and gloves (bad for + you) + + instead, "perceptual cybernetics". + - phi--fecks--psi (phi is external world,Fx = fects are + effectuators and sensors, psi is your internal state) + 3.4.8. Privacy, Credentials without identity + 3.4.9. "Cypherpunks write code" + - "Cypherpunks break the laws they don't like" + - "Don't get mad, get even. Write code." + 3.4.10. Digital Free Markets + + strong crypto changes the nature and visibility of many + economic transactionst, making it very difficult for + governments to interfere or even to enforce laws, + contracts, etc. + - thus, changes in the nature of contract enforcement + + (Evidence that this is not hopeless can be found in + several places: + - criminal markets, where governments obviously cannot be + used + - international markets, a la "Law Merchant" + - "uttering a check" + - shopping malls in cyberspace...no identifiable national or + regional jurisdiction...overlapping many borders... + + caveat emptor (though rating agencies, and other filter + agents, may be used by wary customers....ironically, + reputation will matter even more than it now does) + - no ability to repudiate a sale, to be an Indian giver + - in all kinds of information.... + 3.4.11. The Role of Money + - in monetarizing transactions, access, remailers---digital + postage + 3.4.12. Reductions on taxation + - offshore entities already exempt + - tax havens + - cyberspace localization is problematic + 3.4.13. Transnationalism + - rules of nations are ignored + 3.4.14. Data Havens + - credit, medical, legal, renter, etc. + 3.4.15. MOOs, MUDs, SVRs, Habitat cyberspaces + - "True Names" and "Snow Crash" + - What are + + Habitat....Chip and Randy + - Lucasfilm, Fujitsu + - started as game environment... + - many-user environments + - communications bandwidth is a scarce resource + - object-oriented data representation + + implementation platform unimportant...range of + capabilities + - pure text to Real ity Engines + - never got as far as fully populating the reality + - "detailed central planning is impossible; don't even try" + - 2-D grammar for layouts + + "can't trust anyone" + - someone disassembled the code and found a way to make + themselves invisible + - ways to break the system (extra money) + + future improvements + - multimedia objects, customizable objects, local turfs, + mulitple interfaces + - "Global Cyberspace Infrastructure" (Fujitsu, FINE) + + more bandwidth means more things can be done + - B-ISDN will allow video on demand, VR, etc. + - protocol specs, Joule (secure concurrent operating + system) + - intereaction spaces, topological (not spatial) + + Xerox, Pavel Curtis + + LambdaMOO + - 1200 different users per day, 200 at a time, 5000 total + users + - "social virtual realities"--virtual communities + - how emergent properties emerge + - pseudo-spatial + - rooms, audio, video, multiple screens + - policing, wizards, mediation + - effective telecommuting + - need the richness of real world markets...people can sell + to others + + Is there a set of rules or basic ideas which can form the + basis of a powerfully replicable system? + - this would allow franchises to be disctrubed around the + world + - networks of servers? distinction between server and + client fades... + - money, commercialization? + - Joule language + 3.4.16. "Is personal privacy the main interest of Cypherpunks?" + - Ensuring the _right_ and the _technological feasibility_ is + more of the focus. This often comes up in two contexts: + - 1. Charges of hypocrisy because people either use + pseudonyms or, paradoxically, that they _don't_ use + pseudonyms, digital signatures + 3.4.17. "Shouldn't crypto be regulated?" + - Many people make comparisons to the regulation of + automobiles, of the radio spectrum, and even of guns. The + comparison of crypto to guns is especially easy to make, + and especially dangerous. + - + + A better comparison is "use of crypto = right to speak as + you wish." + - That is, we cannot demand that people speak in a language + or form that is easily understandable by eavesdroppers, + wiretappers, and spies. + + If I choose to speak to my friends in Latvian, or in + Elihiuish, or in + - triple DES, that's my business. (Times of true war, as + in World War + - II, may be slightly different. As a libertarian, I'm + not advocating + - that, but I understand the idea that in times of war + speaking in code + + is suspect. We are not in a time of war, and haven't + been.) + - + - Should we have "speech permits"? After all, isn't the + regulation of + + speech consistent with the regulation of automobiles? + - + - I did a satirical essay along these lines a while back. + I won't + - included it here, though. (My speech permit for satire + expired and I + + haven't had time to get it renewed.) + - + - In closing, the whole comparison of cryptography to + armaments is + - misleading. Speaking or writing in forms not readily + understandable to + - your enemies, your neighbors, your spouse, the cops, or + your local + - eavesdropper is as old as humanity. + 3.4.18. Emphasize the "voluntary" nature of crypto + + those that don't want privacy, can choose not to use crypto + - just as they can take the locks of their doors, install + wiretaps on their phones, remove their curtains so as not + to interfere with peeping toms and police surveillance + teams, etc. + - as PRZ puts it, they can write all their letters on + postcards, because they have "nothing to hide" + - what we want to make sure doesn't happen is _others_ + insisting that we cannot use crypto to maintain our own + privacy + + "But what if criminals have access to crypto and can keep + secrets?" + - this comes up over and over again + - does this mean locks should not exist, or.....? + 3.4.19. "Are most Cypherpunks anarchists?" + - Many are, but probably not most. The term "anarchy" is + often misunderstood. + - As Perry Metzger puts it "Now, it happpens that I am an + anarchist, but that isn't what most people associated with + the term "cypherpunk" believe in, and it isn't fair to + paint them that way -- hell, many people on this mailing + list are overtly hostile to anarchism." [P.M., 1994-07-01] + - comments of Sherry Mayo, others + - But the libertarian streak is undeniably strong. And + libertarians who think about the failure of politics and + the implications of cryptgraphy generally come to the + anarcho-capitalist or crypto-anarchist point of view. + - In any case, the "other side" has not been very vocal in + espousing a consistent ideology that combines strong crypto + and things like welfare, entitlements, and high tax rates. + (I am not condemning them. Most of my leftist friends turn + out to believe in roughly the same things I believe + in...they just attach different labels and have negative + reactions to words like "capitalist.") + 3.4.20. "Why is there so much ranting on the list?" + - Arguments go on and on, points get made dozens of times, + flaming escalates. This has gotten to be more of a problem + in recent months. (Not counting the spikes when Detweiler + was around.) + + Several reasons: + + the arguments are often matters of opinion, not fact, and + hence people just keep repeating their arguments + - made worse by the fact that many people are too lazy to + do off-line reading, to learn about what they are + expressing an opinion on + - since nothing ever gets resolved, decided, vote upon, + etc., the debates continue + - since anyone is free to speak up at any time, some people + will keep making the same points over and over again, + hoping to win through repetition (I guess) + + since people usually don't personally know the other + members of the list, this promotes ranting (I've noticed + that the people who know each other, such as the Bay Area + folks, tend not to be as rude to each other...any + sociologist or psychologist would know why this is so + immediately). + + the worst ranters tend to be the people who are most + isolated from the other members of the list community; + this is generally a well-known phenomenon of the Net + - and is yet more reason for regional Cypherpunks + groups to occasionally meet, to at least make some + social and conversational connections with folks in + their region. + - on the other hand, rudeness is often warranted; people + who assault me and otherwise plan to deprive me of my + property of deserving of death, not just insults [Don't + be worried, there are only a handful of people on this + list I would be happy to see dead, and on none of them + would I expend the $5000 it might take to buy a contract. + Of course, rates could drop.] + 3.4.21. The "rejectionist" stance so many Cypherpunks have + - that compromise rarely helps when very basic issues are + involved + - the experience with the NRA trying compromise, only to find + ever-more-repressive laws passed + - the debacle with the EFF and their "EFF Digital Telephony + Bill" ("We couldn't have put this bill together without + your help") shows the corruption of power; I'm ashamed to + have ever been a member of the EFF, and will of course not + be renewing my membership. + - I have jokingly suggested we need a "Popular Front for the + Liberation of Crypto," by analogy with the PFLP. + 3.4.22. "Is the Cypherpunks group an illegal or seditious + organization?" + - Well, there are those "Cypherpunk Criminal" t-shirts a lot + of us have... + - Depends on what country you're in. + - Probably in a couple of dozen countries, membership would + be frowned on + - the material may be illegal in other countries + - and many of us advocate things like using strong crypto to + avoid and evade tzxes, to bypass laws we dislike, etc. + + 3.5. Self-organizing Nature of Cypherpunks + 3.5.1. Contrary to what people sometimes claim, there is no ruling + clique of Cypherpunks. Anybody is free to do nearly anything, + just not free to commit others to course of action, or + control the machine resources the list now runs on, or claim + to speak for the "Cypherpunks" as a group (and this last + point is unenforceable except through reptutation and social + repercussions). + 3.5.2. Another reason to be glad there is no formal Cypherpunks + structure, ruling body, etc., is that there is then no direct + target for lawsuits, ITAR vioalation charges, defamation or + copyright infringement claims, etc. + + 3.6. Mechanics of the List + 3.6.1. Archives of the Cyperpunks List + - Karl Barrus has a selection of posts at the site + chaos.bsu.edu, available via + gopher. Look in the "Cypherpunks gopher site" directory. + 3.6.2. "Why isn't the list sent out in encrypted form?" + - Too much hassle, no additional security, would only make + people jump through extra hoops (which might be useful, but + probably not worth the extra hassle and ill feelings). + - "We did this about 8 years ago at E&S using DEC VMS NOTES. + We used a plain vanilla secret key algorithm and a key + shared by all legitimate members of the group. We could do + it today -- but why bother? If you have a key that + widespread, it's effectively certain that a "wrong person" + (however you define him/her) will have a copy of the key." + [Carl Ellison, Encrypted BBS?, 1993-08-02] + 3.6.3. "Why isn't the list moderated?" + - This usually comes up during severe flaming episodes, + notably when Detweiler is on the list in one of his various + personnas. Recently, it has not come up, as things have + been relatively quiet. + + Moderation will *not* happen + - nobody has the time it takes + - nobody wants the onus + + hardly consistent with many of our anarchist leanings, is + it? + - (Technically, moderation can be viewed as "my house, my + rules, and hence OK, but I think you get my point.) + - "No, please let's not become a 'moderated' newsgroup. This + would be the end of freedom! This is similar to giving the + police more powers because crime is up. While it is a + tactic to fight off the invaders, a better tactic is + knowledge." [RWGreene@vnet.net, alt.gathering.rainbow, 1994- + 07-06]" + 3.6.4. "Why isn't the list split into smaller lists?" + - What do you call the list outages? + + Seriously, several proposals to split the list into pieces + have resulted in not much + - a hardware group...never seen again, that I know of + - a "moderated cryptography" group, ditto + - a DC-Net group...ditto + - several regional groups and meeting planning groups, + which are apparently moribund + - a "Dig Lib" group...ditto + - use Rishab's comment: + + Reasons are clear: one large group is more successful in + traffic than smaller, low-volume groups...out of sight, + out of mind + - and topics change anyway, so the need for a + "steganography" mailing list (argued vehemently for by + one person, not Romana M., by the way) fades away when + the debate shifts. And so on. + 3.6.5. Critical Addresses, Numbers, etc. + + Cypherpunks archives sites + - soda + - mirror sites + - ftp sites + - PGP locations + - Infobot at Wired + - majordomo@toad.com; "help" as message body + 3.6.6. "How did the Cypherpunk remailers appear so quickly?" + - remailers were the first big win...a weekend of Perl + hacking + + 3.7. Publicity + 3.7.1. "What kind of press coverage have the Cypherpunks gotten?" + - " I concur with those who suggest that the solution to the + ignorance manifested in many of the articles concerning the + Net is education. The coverage of the Cypherpunks of late + (at least in the Times) shows me that reasonable accuracy + is possible." [Chris Walsh, news.admin.policy, 1994-07-04] + + 3.8. Loose Ends + 3.8.1. On extending the scope of Cypherpunks to other countres + - a kind of crypto underground, to spread crypto tools, to + help sow discord, to undermine corrupt governments (to my + mind, all governments now on the planet are intrinsically + corrupt and need to be undermined) + - links to the criminal underworlds of these countries is one + gutsy thing to consider....fraught with dangers, but + ultimately destabilizing of governments + +4. Goals and Ideology -- Privacy, Freedom, New Approaches + + 4.1. copyright + THE CYPHERNOMICON: Cypherpunks FAQ and More, Version 0.666, + 1994-09-10, Copyright Timothy C. May. All rights reserved. + See the detailed disclaimer. Use short sections under "fair + use" provisions, with appropriate credit, but don't put your + name on my words.