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Chat Control Must Be Stopped – Now

(threema.ch)
960 points andrew918277 | 3 comments | 18 Jun 24 08:49 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
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loftsy ◴[18 Jun 24 10:24 UTC] No.40716004[source]▶
It should be possible to have a private chat without spying.

However I have an unpopular opinion, interested to hear what others might think:

We should eliminate anonymity online. If you go on the internet everything you do should be tied back to your name. This can be done using device attestation. Everyone gets a private key tied to their name/address.

This is compatible with free speech. In fact it promotes free speech because being a "troll" becomes a lot more personal.

I think this way of living would be closer to our nature as tribal primates. It would improve behaviour and overall quality of life. Our brains are designed to have checks and balances from wider society which you don't get anonymously online.

This would also reduce the need for govt monitoring because any chat online could be "turned in" by an informer and then any criminals identified.

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1. blowski ◴[18 Jun 24 10:30 UTC] No.40716038[source]▶
I think it's worth debating the idea, exploring what it would look like. But I think there's a lot of hidden complexity there.

1. Who is allowed to detect, process or store your identity? For what purposes?

2. What about "right to forget"? Does the data need to be destroyed after a certain period?

3. Who manufacturers and sells these private keys? What happens if I lose mine, or it gets stolen?

4. How does this work internationally? Can a key from China access a system in the US?

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2. loftsy ◴[18 Jun 24 11:16 UTC] No.40716380[source]▶
Good points. Difficult questions. I was thinking it is tied to the physical device. So you would register a laptop when you buy it with the state and the key would be in the HSM. So the main differences would be:

1. Give my name and address to activate a device 2. "The internet" requires authentication via the HSM.

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3. blowski ◴[18 Jun 24 11:47 UTC] No.40716646[source]▶
Kind of like how a car is tied to an individual, via the logbook (in the UK at least). You need to think who you let use your laptop, lest they get you in trouble. If it's stolen or you sell it, you report it. To be fair, people were against passports and license plate numbers when these were first introduced, and it hasn't lead to the problems people envisaged.

That said... I don't know if this is feasible with a laptop. It's much easier to pawn my laptop, than it is to steal my car and drive it without me knowing. And at what point does a computer become a server, and are those regulated differently?

Knowing that you're never anonymous online would certainly improve some conversations, and mitigate some of the ability for state actors to e.g. sow discontent online. But it would arguably be a huge inconvenience and risk for everybody, so I don't know if it's worth the cost.