[Spooks] WHY

[ＫＣ２ＴＴＫ]

> From: "KD7JYK DM09" <kd7jyk at earthlink.net>
> Sent: Sunday, November 11, 2012 10:18 PM
> To: "Shortwave Spy Numbers Stations" <spooks at mailman.qth.net>
> Subject: Re: [Spooks] WHY

> When is a secret not a secret?  When one person not intended knows it? 

Yes, precisely.

As it applies to us, airwaves are not a secure channel, ergo the raison d'etre for transmitting encrypted/encoded/cyphered messages. The moment you, or I, or any of us are able to decrypt/decode/decypher the message and obtain the payload (the content), it ceases to be a secret.

The question of how many people know ("10 people?  10,000 people?") is irrelevant in this sense.

However, if we assume that the entity which transmits messages is savvy enough to realize that his/her/its messages can be overheard, then we must also assume that those same entities would also be savvy enough to peruse our fine mailing list to determine if their current encryption/encoding/cyphering has been breached, as well as determining whether their transmission system functions or not.

Yes, I just made the argument that the SWL community offers aid to the enemy.  Ironically, we also offer the same aid to friends.

In short...
	- he that hath a secret had better keep secret that he has a secret to keep,
	- oddity invites curiosity,
	- obscurity is not security,
	- information and disinformation is virtually indistinguishable (from the eavesdropper's perspective), and
	- the dissemination of cryptotext and its details is not the same as publication of secrets per se.

	✇ＫＣ２ＴＴＫ