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AT&T accused of breaking customers' secure email "security"

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  • 13-11-2014 8:10pm
    #1
    Impetus
    Registered Users Posts: 1,667 ✭✭✭


    AT&T (and other ISPs) have apparently been removing the STARTTLS from encrypted emails sent by customers over the internet. This causes the "encrypted" emails to be transmitted as plaintext.

    There is no equivalent to Article 8.1 of the ECHR in US law - but one wouldn't be surprized if some bright lawyer comes up with a legal basis for a class action against ISPs where the tamper with encryption settings in internet packets.

    http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2014/11/condemnation-mounts-against-isp-that-sabotaged-users-e-mail-encryption/


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    #2
    Manach
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 9,674 Mod ✭✭✭✭Manach


    The EU Data protection directive would have issues with that type of action. I'd reckon though that the T&Cs of carriage the AT&T use might have clauses to indemnify them. As well, fairly well known that AT&T at the behest of US intelligence agencies (Master Switch by T.Wu) copy network traffic and hence would need that to be in cleartext so it could be datamined should the need arise.


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