Re: World-wide GAK

[Salvatore Nesta <s.nesta@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>For those who thought GAK was merely a local political issue,
>isolated to those barbarians in the USA, one that they could
>afford to ignore and morally refuse to address -- Quelle surprise!
>It's spreading:
>
>FRANCE PROPOSES KEY ENCRYPTION LAW
>
>The French government has proposed a law that would mandate a
>key-recovery system for all encrypted electronic documents, a
>move that is opposed by the business community and the European
>Commission.  Earlier this month, the European Commission rejected
>the key-recovery approach to encryption, which some believe would
>make it easier for competitors to gain access to a company's
>business secrets.  "I do not say this is the best system,"
>says the chief of France's Central Service for the Security of
>Information Systems.  "It is the least bad in trying to find a
>balance between national-security interests, economic interests
>and the protection of personal privacy."
>
>(Wall Street Journal 20 Oct 97)

In Italy, AIPA (Authority for Informatics in Public Administration), has
sent to Government a project of law which excludes "key escrow" and also
the hierarchy of Certification Authorities. However, AIPA didn't define
requirements of private body that can issue a certificate. So the
Governament has sent to Chambers a draft bill which establish that the
private body that can issue a certificate MUST be a S.p.A. whose registered
capital is the same necessary to licence to merchant banking: 7,5 million
dollars.
In such way, italian Internet providers (subjects technically and
structurally most qualified!) won't be able to issue certificates without
any reason.

Salvatore Nesta
s.nesta@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx