Editing 2691: Encryption
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==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
| + | {{incomplete|Created by ALICE FOR BOB - Please change this comment when editing this page.''Possibly connected to Elon buying Twitter? thoughts? talk about secure messaging apps'' Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}} | ||
When teaching encryption / cryptography, it is common to use a story about sending messages from {{w|Alice and Bob|Alice to Bob}} (Party "A" and Party "B" respectively). Cueball claims to have created a texting app that only allows for this one thing. It does not, however, allow "Bob" to reply, making the usefulness of the app questionable at best. It is unclear how it enforces the name restriction, but it is possible that the app figures out the name of the phone's owner. The title text mentions Eve, who in the typical story represents an "eavesdropper", someone who attempts to intercept the messages between Alice and Bob. The fact that persons named Eve are 'forbidden' from installing the app suggests that it might not actually be as secure as Cueball advertises -- it may be that he naively thinks that it's just the name that makes the eavesdropper, and that by excluding all Eves, Alice's messages to Bob will remain private. It is not clear which phones will support this app, but it appears to be perfectly suited for the [[:Category:xkcd Phones|xkcd Phones]]. | When teaching encryption / cryptography, it is common to use a story about sending messages from {{w|Alice and Bob|Alice to Bob}} (Party "A" and Party "B" respectively). Cueball claims to have created a texting app that only allows for this one thing. It does not, however, allow "Bob" to reply, making the usefulness of the app questionable at best. It is unclear how it enforces the name restriction, but it is possible that the app figures out the name of the phone's owner. The title text mentions Eve, who in the typical story represents an "eavesdropper", someone who attempts to intercept the messages between Alice and Bob. The fact that persons named Eve are 'forbidden' from installing the app suggests that it might not actually be as secure as Cueball advertises -- it may be that he naively thinks that it's just the name that makes the eavesdropper, and that by excluding all Eves, Alice's messages to Bob will remain private. It is not clear which phones will support this app, but it appears to be perfectly suited for the [[:Category:xkcd Phones|xkcd Phones]]. | ||
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==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
| + | {{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}} | ||
:[Cueball showing a phone to a long-haired woman, identified in the caption as Alice] | :[Cueball showing a phone to a long-haired woman, identified in the caption as Alice] | ||
:Cueball: The app will let you send messages to your friend Robert, or my brother. | :Cueball: The app will let you send messages to your friend Robert, or my brother. | ||
