Pretty Bad Protest
This wasn't just a silent fantasy. I had created the bare bones of the Web site and contacted Newsweek magazine. I had been profiled in a March 1992 issue regarding the popular Michelangelo virus and the newly emerging Dark Avenger's polymorphic virus mutation engine, and I'd established friendly inside contacts. The magazine's computer and science associate editor loved my idea and promised to give it coverage.
I even understood the potential legal consequences of my actions. I knew I could end up in jail or, at the very least, wasting a lot of money in my defense. I had told my new wife and mother of my first daughter of my idea and the possible consequences. As you can imagine, she was not very supportive of my risking my good job, our house, and our comfortable life. But I was that emotionally driven. At the time I was fond of quoting, "You can take my right to privacy out of my cold, dead hands!" This from a guy who's never held a gun.
Although the exact details are a bit hazy now, I remember nervously dialing Zimmermann for the first time, with the Newsweek editor listening in. I knew getting Zimmermann's support would lock in the magazine's commitment and get me the publicity I would need to get large numbers of visitors willing to join me in my privacy fight.
When I explained my intentions to my crypto hero, instead of embracing my idea as I had expected, he scolded me. He told me that I was stupid for what I was trying -- and that I didn't understand the real consequences of what I was doing. He explained how much time, money, and effort he had put into his own legal defense, and he finished by saying that he did not support my project and would no longer communicate with me.
I was stunned and embarrassed. But fortunately, his admonishment was enough to get me to drop my plans, much to the relief of my family and friends. Years later, the charges against Zimmermann that so offended me were dropped (or more accurately, never filed). His legal defense against the federal investigation helped define the legal treatment of subsequent encryption software as it proliferated around the globe.
Since then, Phil Zimmermann has developed other encryption products, most recently an innovative, free plug-in product, Zfone, which works with a variety of IP telephony software clients. Listening to Zimmermann speak about his latest project at a security conference last year, I was amazed to hear him again reassert the need for encryption products to ensure people's freedom.
As I watched the recent political struggles of a suppressed people and learned how they used the Internet to circumvent a repressive regime, it made me realize the importance of contributions from people like Zimmermann.
So although this is too long overdue, thank you, Phil Zimmermann. Thank you for your free encryption products. Thank you for standing up to our federal government when it was wrong and for battling on behalf of those without a voice. And personally, thanks for steering me clear of a run-in with the feds.
Ad Choices