TOTW №13: Not All Encryption Is Created Equal

Hello, IoTeX community!

For this week’s discussion, we would like you to review our recent blog post on encryption in the digital world

Encryption is the reason everything from financial transactions to state secrets get passed around the internet nearly instantaneously, unlocking massive amounts of innovation, wealth, and prosperity as a result. But not all encryption is created equal. Some forms of encryption expose the communications of internet users to private corporations and other third parties they choose to share your data with.

The difference between C2S {client-to-server} and E2E {end-to-end} encryption can’t be overstated. Simply put, it is the difference between communicating privately, and having everything you do monitored.

In this week’s discussion, we would like to ask you and share thoughts on:

How do you understand flipping-the-switch concept introduced in the blog post and do you have posses products that you are willing to use and give up on your privacy?

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{Make sure to include your Telegram ID}

You can post more than once but make sure to share different stories/use cases, do not duplicate posts. Feel free to comment & reply to posts from other community members.

8 Likes

*How do you understand flipping-the-switch concept introduced in the blog post?"

The fact you trust the people at the reigns of an institution that holds your sensitive data at a given moment, does not protect you from those people ultimately leaving or new people coming in with a new culture or policies, and having the switch flipped on you. I mentioned something similar to this in a previous ToTW. Generally, this is a big problem. Since i’m a tech person and I understand that my data is likely being used. I feel bad for the unwitting individuals who think their data is “private.”

"Do you have posses products that you are willing to use and give up on your privacy?*

I think most of us do. Especially if we’re using social media. How often do you see things in your Facebook new feed that you’ve previously searched on Google or received an email about, etc? Happens to me all the time. I’m sure I ignored the fine print. sadly, I’m OK with sacrificing some privacy for technology. This may change in the future, but right now I’m OK with it. it may take something happening to my personal data that impacts my life. Otherwise, I can’t see myself giving up using the full spectrum of technology to get some of my privacy back. Who knows how much info is already out there on the dark web about us anyway.

@troytrojan01

2 Likes

It is obvious, that it is much more safer if you don’t need of thinking about trusting the third party. And the situation when you have an agreement with a person or organisation which loses an ability to keep the agreement is relatively common. My friend had a similar situation when, after he left his job, the agreement with the client was revised without taking into account what was discussed between them. It was very inconvenient, but my friend could not do anything to fix the situation. There was another example when one of Internet hosting services with which I worked was bought by a bigger one company and they lost my data, didn’t write dns correctly etc. The older company was really good, but they failed, and the new company turned out to be terrible. If I had private data stored by them in such situation, I’d be very upset.

So people should know at least what problems can be with their private data when they trust some companies. Some data can be trusted to mostly everyone, and some should stay strictly private. For instance, if I send payment information most times it should be just between me and the recipient. But if I send a link to a fun story in a web, it has much less negative consequences, so I’m not so worried it it would be compromised.

Telegram… @bez_nicka

2 Likes

A very interesting article has been published! It reveals a very important problem.

In fact, the problem, unfortunately, is very global.

We may wake up one day and it turns out that all companies belong to one or two of the largest global corporations. And we don’t even know when the purchase of such small companies took place. But it turned out that this happened many years ago and all these years a large corporation has been collecting our personal information in order to use it against you.

Every day, such a scenario is getting closer and closer to implementation.

I can say the following about myself. I already wrote about this in one of our weekly topics so that I would rather use just an ordinary kitchen knife and an ordinary frying pan than a smart kitchen technique that constantly sends something somewhere. This time, my example very accurately describes my opinion.

No, I will not sacrifice my privacy for convenience. This convenience in the future can be used against me.

@Artanovskaya

2 Likes

Such a concept has a right to exist, but in reasonable measures.

For example, when all product users of a company that another owner bought are aware of this and they have the choice to continue to use the products further or not.

If a person has no choice, and the use of the product is imposed on him, especially when the person does not know about the new owner, then this already passes the line of private property.

As for me, perhaps I would have given up my privacy if the product were really worth it. But while such a product has not been invented yet :joy:

@SaleAccSF

1 Like

Flipping-the-switch is indirectly becoming our ways of life, in which the majority of people in the society have accepted as norms and necessary evil that is eating deep into the fabric of our society. The lost of control over flipping-the-switch by the populace was as result of overwhelming financial power in the hands of few tech giants and big companies. :convenience_store: :department_store:
It has become an everyday publications on our national and international dailies that one big company has buy back the weak ones. :newspaper: :newspaper_roll: :newspaper:
One big senerio that left a critical damage to me was the then change in monetary policy that tookplace over a decade ago that minium capital base requirement for any bank in the soil of my country to have before be in operation was 139 Million dollar. For any of those banks not to outwrightly be at the loosing end, they have to result to fire by force marriages. Merger and acqusition that occured then handed over most people financial data into coffers of untrust banks which led hacking of their accounts. Several people loose a lot money to this flipping-the-switch activities in which am also a victim. This is a product that is a must to have in which ordinarily if by my power to encript my information before accessing these services, I would have done so. The permanent solution to this omen is the provision offered by blockchain technology that is secured, transparent, user friendly, decentralized, easily accessible, imutable and have end to end encryption. :closed_lock_with_key: :lock_with_ink_pen: :closed_lock_with_key:

Telegram Id: @tadex01

2 Likes

The only word that occurs to my mind anytime I recall the phrase “flipping the switch” is the word “INVASION” which practically explains how millions of users privacy are invaded simply because the company they entrusted their data with bailed on them and sold out to a bigger one without any prior notice. Usually a sudden event to the users.

We cannot ignore the fact that these giant tech companies are always striving at all times to invent new products that would fetch them more millions and fame, and when the ideas are not forth coming, the thought of invasion creeps in and the search for a company whose users data that might be valuable to their new innovation kick starts. The masses in their on little understanding would think that they are saving businesses and jobs.

It’s now glaring that privacy can only be gauranteed through decentralization, a true end-to-end data encryption. And until the aforementioned data security system is fully adopted in the development of our tech devices, which will really take time, I shall continue to do the little that I can to safeguard my privacy/ data from these data miners and would not consciously trade it for any tech gadget. My privacy, my Responsibility.
@Free_ibelieve

1 Like

Flip-the-switch is data breaches concept that emanated from those in authority, place of power and larger corporations using theirs influences and position to erode our privacy. Governments are doing this by erecting surveillance in strategic locations to monitor and accessing our privacy and using the forces such as police under their control while larger corporations are buying the smaller ones in order to access the personal information of their clients.

It is a good one whenever it is use to fight crimes, but mostly reverse is the case. Police these days are colluding with criminals to trading off personal information, itinerary of members of the public day to day activities so as kidnap for ransom or rob them of their valuables. :policeman: :oncoming_police_car: :policewoman: :police_car:

The case of bigger corporations acquiring the smaller businesses these days is rampant. This is ongoing on daily basis in order to increase their information base through new clients of these small businesses. There was a time when my mobile service company was bought by a different company, then I was receiving strange messages from other corporations that I never subscribes to, this gave me sleepless night evidently knowing fully well that my data are not safe.

In order to solve this problems, our information needed to be fully encrypted before allowing to pass through various channels that may require of, by adopting new technologies provided by blockchain and secure hardware such as those provided by IoTeX.

Telegram ID- @SangosanyaM

2 Likes

Unfortunately, almost everyone has a home product that violates our privacy. This is especially because we have no other choice if we are interested in technology or want to make our lives easier with technology.

If I had the choice between C2S {Client-to-Server} and E2E {End-to-End} encryption, I would always choose End-to-End encryption. The scandal surrounding Facebook, Cambridge Analytica and the presidential election have shown us that our data have the power to manipulate us.

E2E encrypted devices not only protect our data and the associated privacy. Appropriate devices also preserve our free will. In a future without end-to-end encryption, we would be nothing more than puppets.

TG: @altcoin_maximalist

1 Like

Flip-the-Switch Risk: whenever it comes Client - Server, this is always dangerous about the data. At any time, the Server can be exposed to the data ( We have seen many data exploit ). Hacking is different but insider’s leak knowingly or unknowingly is the biggest issue now. Many companies are moving their data to the cloud and it creates a possibility of Data Leakage.

E2E: will be most secure because the Private Keys will be held on with User. It is not easy to hack as Man in the Middle. We can use it,

  1. Wherever we submit our PII details.
  2. UPI/Payment apps

TG: @murugan25589

1 Like

Hi guys! Thank you to all that have participated in this discussion! :clap:

Here are the winners of this thread:
@No_One
@tadex
@livingseed

Please check your wallets & join our next discussion!

1 Like

Thanks for the opportunity to participate.