🚀 go-pugleaf

Tom Reingold (tr) writes:

tr> When there are problems with the mailing system, the postmaster gets
tr> copies of private email mailed to him.  It's analogous to falling in
tr> his lap.  It happened to me today.  A friend had sent me mail, his
tr> system provided a bogus address, I didn't get it, my postmaster did.
tr> He handed me a printed copy.  I was lucky that he could tell it was
tr> intended for me.  And I was lucky it wasn't very private in nature.

Only a fool would send private mail or keeps private files on systems
where any root user can read any file (and it is fairly easy to become
root), especially if such systems are networked, and NFS is used or PCs
are connected to the wire. You can be nearly sure that somebody will be
snooping the wire all the time, for example.

I would like every new user on every computer or network system that is
not certified for multi level security to receive a large sign saying:

	Don't count on privacy. At least the system manager
	can always read your plaintext files and mail.

Systems that give dependable privacy cost *a lot*, even more than you
think.
--
Piercarlo "Peter" Grandi           | ARPA: pcg%cs.aber.ac.uk@nsfnet-relay.ac.uk
Dept of CS, UCW Aberystwyth        | UUCP: ...!mcsun!ukc!aber-cs!pcg
Penglais, Aberystwyth SY23 3BZ, UK | INET: pcg@cs.aber.ac.uk