CompuServe Messages

PGP stands for "Pretty Good Privacy", a program written by Philip Zimmerman which uses a PUBLIC KEY. Here's the way it works: anyone may publish a public key of their own devising, so that everyone can see it. But only that individual can code messages that may be read with the public key. (There are really a pair of keys, one secret, one public). So .. a program comes along claiming to be written by X. You're not sure; it might be a fake (this has happened lots of time). Well, X has published a public key (sometimes called a "fingerprint") and sends along an authentication message with the program, encoded in PGP. Now: if you, or anyone else, can decode that message using X's publicly known key, you can be sure that the transmission is genuine and really comes from him. You do not need to decode the message, or to have PGP .. it's just another assurance level is you would like it. —- PGP has been the subject of hot debate for well over a year now. Zimmerman wrote it for general use (and a version for sale), and some versions use patented coding. BUT: agencies of the US Government do not want encryption systems in general use that are too good; they want codes that they can break. For example, they have been pushing the "clipper" chip encryption, which is fairly weak, and have been pressing for key registration of encryption keys with federal authorities. Following this line further, they have banned the export of PGP from the US without special licensing. But, netowrks being what they are, there are already many versions of PGP available on BBSs around the world, and its use for "signature authentication" is widespread. What will happen next in these murky waters? Who knows? I have no doubt that there will be books out about the whole PGP confusion. Are patents being violated? Will the FBI succeed in muzzling private encryption? Can export controls work in worldwide network environments? — Anyhow, you don't *need* PGP. But you can get it and use it if you want. –Jim