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The EU Should Finance Key Open Source Tools

posted by CoolHand on Saturday April 25 2015, @04:16PM   Printer-friendly
from the we-can-trust-the-gubmint-for-encryption-and-security dept.

sigma writes:

A study by European IT security experts suggests that the EU should also fund or participate in the development of open source software to ensure end-to-end encryption solutions. Using open source is not a universal remedy, they state, but it is an “important ingredient in an EU strategy for more security and technological independence.” The experts say support for open source will increase the EU’s technological independence.

A second study for this committee meeting argues that the use of open source computer operating systems and applications reduces the risk of privacy intrusion by mass surveillance.

https://joinup.ec.europa.eu/community/osor/news/ep-study-%E2%80%9Ceu-should-finance-key-open-source-tools%E2%80%9D

 
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  • (Score: 2) by frojack on Saturday April 25 2015, @09:38PM

    by frojack (1554) on Saturday April 25 2015, @09:38PM (#175171) Journal

    Perhaps you are right.

    But all those eyes failed on the Elliptical Curve [cryptographyengineering.com] random number generator fiasco.

    Just as likely, it will be illegal to change the government approved back-doors, and every distro will be obligated to propagate them, and removal instructions will become illegal to publish. Look at the lengths governments have gone to to shut down TPB and Wikileaks.

    Governments will always put government priorities ahead of yours, and with government money comes government regulations.

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  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by maxwell demon on Sunday April 26 2015, @07:14AM

    by maxwell demon (1608) on Sunday April 26 2015, @07:14AM (#175291) Journal

    But all those eyes failed on the Elliptical Curve random number generator fiasco.

    Ultimately it was found. It probably wouldn't have been found if the algorithm hadn't been publicly documented. And with Open Source, you now can check that it indeed doesn't use elliptical curves. With proprietary code you have to trust the vendor's claim that it doesn't.

    Just as likely, it will be illegal to change the government approved back-doors,

    With Open Source, you'd have to be very explicit about that requirement. And being explicit about that requirement would probably be political suicide.

    With proprietary software, all you'll have to do is to make decompiling/changing a crime (with copyright and malware as an excuse). No problem to sell that to the general public.

    Look at the lengths governments have gone to to shut down TPB and Wikileaks.

    With TPB and Wikileaks it was a well-defined target. With Open Source, they'd have to target everyone.

    Governments will always put government priorities ahead of yours, and with government money comes government regulations.

    But the most important goal of every government is to continue being the government. In a democracy, this means to at least pay lip service to the wishes of the public. And in the field of backdoors, Open Source makes it much harder to pay lip service while doing the opposite.

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