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<!DOCTYPE html> <html lang="en"> <head> <meta charset="UTF-8"> <title>Is Encryption Worth It? | tait.tech</title> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/assets/css/style.css"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0"> <meta name="author" content="Tait Hoyem"> <meta name="keywords" content=""> <meta name="description" content=""> </head> <body> <div id="wrapper"> <header> <nav> <input type="checkbox" id="menu"> <label for="menu">☰</label> <div class="menu-content"> <a href="/" class="nav-link">Home</a> <a href="/blog/" class="nav-link">Blog</a> <a href="https://github.com/TTWNO/" class="nav-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Github</a> </div> </nav> </header> <main> <article> <header> <h1 class="post-title">Is Encryption Worth It?</h1> <time datetime="20-01-26" class="post-date">Sunday, January 26 2020</time> </header> <hr> <p>What is the most embarassing thing you have typed into Google search? What is the most personal secret you told a friend in confidence? What is your bank password? What is your business’s secret to stay ahead of the competition?</p> <p>Now at first these questions may seem not completely related. There is a point though: You likely sent all of this information over the internet.</p> <p>When you send that messege to your friend or business partner, why is it that any person can’t just listen to the signals coming from your phone or laptop and know what you sent to your friend or colleague? The answer: encryption.</p> <p>First, some background about internet privacy. You can’t have a conversation about internet encryption and privacy without discussing the man himself:</p> <h3 id="snowden">Snowden</h3> <p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Snowden" target="_blank">Edward Joseph Snowden</a> is an ex-NSA, ex-CIA employee who felt the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution" target="_blank">United State’s 4th Ammendment</a> was being violated by their programs of msas survailence. Snowden was raised a staunch establishmentarian conservative; his girlfriend Lisndey however, slowly started changing his mind. Snowden became very influenced by the ideology of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Populism" target="_blank">populism</a>. His populist thinking is shown very clearly when he explains his reasoning for his disclosure of humongous troves of NSA documents.</p> <blockquote> <p>“My sole motive is to inform the public as to that which is done in their name and that which is done against them.” —<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2013/jun/09/nsa-whistleblower-edward-snowden-interview-video" target="_blank">Edward Snowden</a></p> </blockquote> <p>Snowden’s first set of leaks went public in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/05/nsa-gchq-encryption-codes-security" target="_blank">The Gaurdian</a>, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/10/us/former-cia-worker-says-he-leaked-surveillance-data.html" target="_blank">The New York Times</a>, and <a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/the-nsas-secret-campaign-to-crack-undermine-internet-encryption" target="_blank">ProPublica</a> in late 2013; people started to realize that their governments and internet service providers (ISPs) <strong>are</strong> listening. People understood there might be more sinister motives than “national security” at play.</p> <p>Personally, I have seen a lot of non-tech-savy individuals using security-conscious software when I am helping them fix a problem. In fact, there was one time I saw a collage student from rural Alberta who had a VPN running on her phone. This impressed me!</p> <h3 id="encryption-on-the-web">Encryption on The Web</h3> <p>The type of encryption used on the web is called: HyperText Transfer Protocol–Secure (HTTPS). This kind of encryption stops two things from happening: A) it stops the information you are sending and recieving online from being seen by easvesdroppers and criminals, and B) stops those same third-parties from tampering with the data.</p> <p>
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