When VPNs and encrypted messengers can't protect you...
An interesting story has popped up recently that demonstrates just how careful people need to be when using privacy-enabling technologies. In Pakistan, a gentleman called Nadeem James has been sentenced to death for sending a message to his friend that contained a joke about the Islamic Prophet Muhammad.
Sadly for Mr James (who is himself a Christian) his friend didn't find the joke funny and decided to tell the government. Mr James was later found guilty of blasphemy and will now be put to his death (unless his appeal is successful).
This is where the story gets interesting, and where it has an important digital privacy lesson THAT EVERYONE NEEDS TO KNOW!
When we use encryption services such as Whatsapp or Virtual Private Networks our data is protected from the eyes of ISPs and the government (If you don't know what a VPN is then please comment below and I'll make another post that covers it).
Encryption securely scrambles all the data so that only the sender and the recipient are privy to the information.
However, the recipient of any message ultimately has the power to disclose that data to third parties. In the case of Mr James, his private joke (which he no doubt meant in an innocent way to his personal friend) wound up in the hands of the government and has now probably cost him his life.
Admittedly, this is an extreme case. However, it does highlight an incredibly important issue for all people that use digital privacy-enabling services.
Your data, information, or opinions, are only secure as long as whoever you share them with also keeps them private. For this reason, privacy-enabling technologies must be used with caution. They do not give you the safety to say anything you want - anytime you want - unless you can be absolutely certain of the discretion of the recipient.
If you want to read the full story please look here: https://www.bestvpn.com/privacy-news/private-messengers-not-foolproof/
Image credit: Denys Prykhodov/Shutterstock.com
As a security professional, I always tell people to assume everything they do while online is public. Would you mind if what you are writing was posted for the whole world to see? If you do, don't write it. I don't care if you send it through a protonmail.com account or not. If you are on the Internet, what you write should be considered seen by anyone.
The same is true with where you go on the Internet, what you're looking at, and what you're downloading. It's all public and easily tracked by governments and their agencies. Even if you have end to end encryption too, you can still have a key logger. Even the best phones will still track your location as well.
If you really want security, make the message on a completely offline system. Encrypt it there, transfer it by hand, and then send it. The other person does the opposite. As you said though, they can just forward that received message to a government agent. Worse, they could be the government agent.
Trust? I don't have much of it. Even when you whisper something in a loved one's ear, it is no longer a secret. Chances are, they will repeat it. Therefore, only speak of things you want to be repeated. Otherwise, keep your trap shut, or understand the consequences. haha
I'll resteem this to help get you some followers. There's a security channel on steemit.chat too if you ever have the spare time to network and engage through it. Please consider using the #security tag. Basically, look through the existing popular tags, and use them as much as possible but only when it is appropriate.
I do understand where you're coming from, but personally, I think the issues are a bit more complicated.
On this occasion, it was an ill-timed joke that probably should never have been made. At the end of the day, any joke that can be construed as belittling to another persons faith is probably unnecessary and choosing what one says, and to whom, is a part of life that everyone should carefully consider.
That said, one would hope that an innocent joke made to a friend would not result in a death sentence. Sadly that isn't always the case in today's world.
Although I agree that "Even when you whisper something in a loved one's ear, it is no longer a secret", I cannot agree that communication made online should always be considered public.
For political dissidents, citizens living in oppressive regimes that need to express opinions - or ask for help in dire circumstances, journalists, lawyers, and many other people, communicating online privately is essential and does and can happen. Reliable VPNs do exist and they do allow people to gain digital privacy. Then there is Tor and for those people that want to go the extra mile VPN into Tor.
It is my strong opinion that people should be able to communicate privately via the internet when they want to, and reliable private messengers and VPN services are a massively important part of that process. However, one must use extreme caution and be aware of the limitations of these technologies. they must also educate themselves on how to properly use those technologies to ensure that they are properly evading snooping from those that they wish to keep their communications private.
One thing I disagree strongly with, and that makes me instantly think that the oppressors are winning the war, is that we should "only speak of things you want to be repeated." This I will never stand for.
In places where people can be killed for expressing unpropagandized opinions, and where those people are literally heroes for spreading truth, and/or attempting to overthrow unpopular authoritarian governments (whether they be local or nationwide power structures) - digital privacy and the ability to say what they want, without it being repeated to the authorities is of utmost important.
People shouldn't have to bite their tongue for fear that it will be repeated to the wrong people, which is why the anonymous movement has a lot to teach us in terms of how people can exist in the digital realm in a manner that allows them to spread their true inner thoughts without fear of repercussions.
What you want is very difficult to obtain though. The governments of the world control the Internet. They run it. I agree with what you are saying, and people should be able to communicate securely and without fear.
I definitely am not saying people should simply shut up and take it either. My hope is that they are realistic about the risks though and do their best to minimize the danger of being caught.
“Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.” --Sun Tzu
Agreed, people need to be aware of what they can and can't-do to protect themselves. Obfuscation technologies are awesome but they come with risks - especially because they make people feel secure - which can lead to mistakes like the one made by Mr James.
Thanks for your thoughts though! I'm always happy to discuss these things haha. I really appreciate you jumping in with your opinions. I also thank you for the resteem and for all the advice you have given me so far. nice one :)
Dang @finnan you seem to know alot about security. I would love to see your posting about some security tips! Or a better understanding of how "safe" we actually are.
My specialty is physical security though for homes. I have done some IT security work, but it is not my passion. I have tons of previous posts about residential and related security too with more to come!
I second that! Would be invaluable for our community and general education here!
I think on of the general take away of this story is that one should give serious thought to one's environment and to whom one chooses to communicate information that can be considered highly sensitive or offensive in nature. In other words, maintain "situational awareness".
Agreed. So many people seem to think that these types of technology are foolproof, but, like you say, people need to keep their wits about them.
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Yes, of course, feel free to share it! All my best. Ray.
Good point :) And a very shocking article. Making ill jokes about religion in regligous is never a good idea.
Thanks, Im glad you enjoyed the article.
Very depressing the man had to die for writing a joke. Let this be a lesson to all, write what you want people to see.