NetNews Usenet Archive 1993 #3/NN_1993_3.iso/spool/uk/misc/3209

Internet Message Format | 1993-01-26 | 1.7 KB

Xref: sparky uk.misc:3209 alt.conspiracy:14670
Path: sparky!uunet!mcsun!uknet!glasgow!jack
From: [e-mail] (Jack Campin)
Newsgroups: uk.misc,alt.conspiracy
Subject: Re: Camilla-gate
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Date: 26 Jan 93 13:48:02 GMT
References: <[e-mail]> <[e-mail]> <[e-mail]>
Reply-To: [e-mail] (Jack Campin)
Organization: COMANDOS Project, Glesga Yoonie
Lines: 21

James Petts <[e-mail]> wrote:
> [e-mail] writes:
>> It would be reasonable to assume that the resources of these organisations
>> are capable of breaking ANY encryption system available for public use.
> Unlikely. Although it has never been proven, the RSA Public Key system
> is thought to be secure using a 1024 bit modulus for the calculation. This
> view is reinforced when one considers that the NSA place restrictions on
> its use and distribution within the US. If you want more detail I can
> post a FAQ on the subject of public key cryptography.

This is irrelevant to the purposes Jim had in mind unless you can find an
implementation of 1024-bit RSA that works fast enough to do real-time
encryption of telephone conversations and uses hardware that will fit in a
mobile phone.  I don't believe any such thing exists, or is likely to for
several years, or is likely to be affordable till well into the next century.

--
--  Jack Campin    room G092, Computing Science Department, Glasgow University,
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