nothing but encrypting everything client-side using auditable code is bulletproof
That sounds like Colin Percival's (cperciva) startup: http://www.tarsnap.com/
"The same way everyone else does: encrypt the data using a secret known only to the customer, isolate internal systems .., and .. creates a robust audit trail."
Who? Who does that?
If you give your data to someone, chances are they might look at it. If you store files, use email or surf the web at work, chances are the IT guys can look at it. Of course, they should not, and they probably have better things to do etc etc, but believing this will never happen just seems naive.
Re:Trust is Fragile
by SoftwareMaven on Tuesday January 17, 2012 @02:19AM
(#3474101)
And then somebody loses their private key material and they look to you to fix their problem.
Client-side encryption with end-user key management is not yet practical for the average end user. Until it is (I'm hopeful we'll get there), the average service will require some sort of administrative back door that is controlled by process and people.
Re:Trust is Fragile
by SomeCallMeTim on Monday January 16, 2012 @02:11PM
(#3471984)
A friend of mine is working on that auditable client-side system you mention:
The same way everyone else does: encrypt the data using a secret known only to the customer, isolate internal systems that have access to the decrypted data so that no one person can ever access that data on their own authority, and ensure that whatever procedure does permit access with the requisite authority creates a robust audit trail. If security really matters, the whole system and its logs should be regularly audited by an independent party, too.
You have to have some sort of trust, because obviously if everyone in the company is crooked then nothing but encrypting everything client-side using auditable code is bulletproof. But you can certainly engineer systems so that access requires multiple people's consent and gets securely logged, which would eliminate casual snooping and provide robust evidence for legal action in the event of collective abuse.