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Programmer faces crypto probe
By Tim Clark
Staff Writer, CNET NEWS.COM
May 22, 1998, 11:40 a.m. PT
URL: http://www.news.com/News/Item/0,4,22415,00.html
A Silicon Valley programmer on Tuesday is slated to respond to a subpoena
by an arm of the Commerce Department investigating whether a security
plug-in that can be downloaded from his Web site violates U.S. laws barring
the export of strong encryption.
Charles Booher of Sync Systems, who wrote the SecureOffice encryption
module while recovering from his third bout with cancer, said he will show
up at the San Jose, California, offices of the Office of Export
Enforcement, as ordered.
"Sync Systems is basically me and a program I put together that nobody's
paid attention to so far except for the export administration," Booher said
in an interview. "I've got a regular 9 to 5 job. I do disk drive testers
for a living. Crypto is just sort of like a hobby for me."
Commerce Department officials declined to comment on the matter, citing
departmental policy not to discuss issues that may or may not be under
investigation.
However, a copy of the subpoena posted on Booher's site indicates the
government is investigating whether his Sync Systems has distributed
168-bit triple DES (data encryption standard) crypto software.
U.S. laws generally require government approval to distribute encryption
technology that is stronger than 56 bits outside the U.S. except to
financial institutions. Even government approvals often require a promise
that the seller will initiate a "key recovery" system within several years.
Key recovery and key escrow systems give law enforcement agencies--with
court approval--and businesses access to cryptographic keys that can be
used to decrypt scrambled data.
Booher's subpoena requires him to turn over business records, notes of
phone conversations and meetings, email messages, fax transmissions, and
export documents that might shed light on where the encryption software may
have been distributed.
But Booher said he doesn't have most of the requested information.
"Basically, the documents aren't there," he said.
SecureOffice hasn't been a hot-selling product, Booher said. The download
from his Web site allows 40 free uses of the software, but users then can
request a key to unlock the software for future uses. So far, two people
have requested that key, and Booher isn't charging for it.
"Basically, there has been zero interest. It has not been an overwhelming
response," he said. Except from the Commerce Department, which requested
Booher's source code.
He has declined to turn it over so far.
-o-
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Received on Fri May 29 23:12:52 1998