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Re:Email exchange between Edward Snowden and former GOP Sena... by phaus on Tuesday July 16, 2013 @03:38PM (#6054247)
Such training does not exist anywhere on this planet.

Edit:

I already mentioned SERE training in a higher level post. It's pretty intense, but still, the most valuable lesson you learn is that everyone will end up talking.

I was simply commenting on the possibility of a person resisting torture. If that person has some sort of safety mechanism in place, the torturer might not be able to get the information he wants, but that's not because the victim has resisted, because he won't.

Re:Email exchange between Edward Snowden and former GOP Sena... by shabble on Tuesday July 16, 2013 @03:51PM (#6054310)
Many US military personnel go through SERE[1] training, which includes some rather unpleasant things, and other countries have similar programs (The UK RTI[2] for one example).

Obviously a group less concerned about the long-term health of their interrogatees have a lot more flexibility in methods, and training is largely understood to be a delaying tactic to spoil time-sentitive tactical data, rather than resist interrogation indefinitely.

Hypothetically, there could be a mechanism by which he has to check in with some associates periodically, who by means of some N of M secret sharing are able to destroy/release the data otherwise. Then you need to resist for only 1-2 checkin periods. Or have a duress codeword that causes the same result. Any destruction scheme requires that the data be held somewhere secure enough not to be cloned though.

(And any heartbeat type scheme requires periodic communication with some/all associates, possibly leading your adversary to them, although broadcast media is probably good enough while he's mainstream news)

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survival,_Evasion,_Resistance_...

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resistance_to_interrogation

Re:Email exchange between Edward Snowden and former GOP Sena... by chaz on Tuesday July 16, 2013 @05:18PM (#6054799)
This was an interesting read: http://www.quora.com/Torture/Whats-the-best-thing-to-do-if-b...

> You'll break. Instantly. So spare yourself the agony. Just spill the beans.

Re:Email exchange between Edward Snowden and former GOP Sena... by lifeformed on Tuesday July 16, 2013 @03:43PM (#6054274)
The training is right here:

1) Write some software that destroys your data if you don't login every x hours.

2) Under duress, stall for x hours.

Re:Email exchange between Edward Snowden and former GOP Sena... by phaus on Tuesday July 16, 2013 @04:03PM (#6054380)
If they abduct and torture you immediately, the chances of you stalling for x hours is pretty much non-existent. Snowden is in Russia. Arguably, no nation on the planet is better at torturing people than they are, and unlike the U.S. Russia doesn't really give a shit if the rest of the world doesn't like their methods. His interrogation would likely take minutes, not hours.
Re:Email exchange between Edward Snowden and former GOP Sena... by lifeformed on Tuesday July 16, 2013 @05:39PM (#6054921)
Well, my point is that there are alternate ways of ensuring the data doesn't get out, not just by being really good at resisting torture.

Other methods:

A) Alternate password that destroys the data.

B) Cyanide capsule in tooth.