Even if only one of those 10 pictures is a person from the danger list, the system alerts security staff to carry out a full identity check.

Das GNU Privacy Projekt. The site is in German

CeBIT - IT Newsticker - CeBIT: Federal German Ministry of Economics Forces E-mail Encryption.

At the CeBIT the Federal German Ministry of Economics distributes for free the mail encryption program GnuPP 1.1 complete with manual. The mail roboter Adele shall provide a lead-in to the issue by practising the krypto mail communication together with the user.

The Federal German Ministry of Economics is supporting the open source project GnuPP ( GNU Privacy Project) since the year 2000. With that the Ministry wants to provide the development of a cryptography infrastructure that does not depend on manufacturers, that is safe and corresponds to international standards. It would not be recommended to use standard software in security sensitive areas and the Ministry explicitly warns to do so in its press release. Only the open source principle allows the user to look at the complete programming of a software, and that means security to the greatest extent.

Apart from the software the package of the Ministry contains a two-piece manual that is completely new written and designed. With the help of this manual even laypersons shall be able to clear the first hurdle of e-mail encryption. And something else is new: "Adele" (adele@gnupp.org), an exercise roboter for practising the procedure of encryption and decryption as often as the entry-level user will need it. Adele reacts to sent-in public keys and encrypted e-mails, sends its own public key, and answers to encrypted and decrypted incoming e-mails. In this way a dialog between correspondence partners is formed so that entry-level users can practise transactions of e-mail encryption "like in real life" and may gain confidence in the safety of this procedure.

Slashdot | Encryption For All Sponsored by German Govt..

InfoWorld - Opinions - XP bandwidth brouhaha.

Reader Frank Brown sent me a completely different concern about XP, relating to VNC (Virtual Network Computing), a free remote-access application I described last week (see "Your virtual network," InfoWorld, March 11).

Microsoft's XP license agreement says, "Except as otherwise permitted by the NetMeeting, Remote Assistance, and Remote Desktop features described below, you may not use the Product to permit any Device to use, access, display, or run other executable software residing on the Workstation Computer, nor may you permit any Device to use, access, display, or run the Product or Product's user interface, unless the Device has a separate license for the Product."

That means using any software other than Microsoft's to view an XP desktop from Windows 2000 or any other operating system would violate the company's license agreement, in case you care.

Slashdot | Your Rights Online - Microsoft XP License Prohibits VNC.

Slashdot | Your Rights Online - Sites Wary of Adopting P3P.

EPIC (June 2000) - Pretty Poor Privacy: An Assessment of P3P and Internet Privacy.

This report examines whether P3P is an effective solution to growing public concerns about online privacy. The report surveys earlier experience with "cookie" technology and notes similarities. The report finds that P3P fails to comply with baseline standards for privacy protection. It is a complex and confusing protocol that will make it more difficult for Internet users to protect their privacy. P3P also fails to address many of the privacy problems specifically associated with the Internet. The report further finds that earlier versions of P3P were withdrawn because the developers recognized that the proposed negotiation process was too burdensome for users and that the automatic transfer of personal information would be widely opposed. It is anticipated that this version of P3P will also be significantly overhauled once it is reviewed. The report concludes that there is little evidence to support the industry claim that P3P will improve user privacy citing the widely accepted Fair Information Practices.

The report recommends the adoption of privacy standards built on Fair Information Practices and genuine Privacy Enhancing Techniques that minimize or eliminate the collection of personally identifiable information. Simple, predictable rules for the collection and use of personal information will also support consumer trust and confidence. P3P, on the other hand, is likely to undermine public confidence in Internet privacy.