Communications White Paper... MonkeyNet is here....

Ok as promised, but only a week late, here is the Communications White Paper that I and the Development Team have been working on for the last SIX Months. This whole idea started with the Secure Phone Comms Thread, and My Secure Comms Blog, and has expanded from there. The premiss was, "What happens when the Internet doesn't function, anymore. How do we, Monkeys, keep our Communications going? How do we find each other for Mutual Support and Assistance, in a Post Internet World? Well that is what the White Paper, addresses. If you have comments, or interest in the MonkeyNet Project, feel free to make it known here, in this Thread.

 

Well, We started with what MOST of the Users HAVE installed... Lowest Common Denominator.... sort of thing.... Myself, I run the stuff on a Virtual Machine on my Mac OSX Snow Leopard. The GPG Stuff can be run on just about ANY OS, you can Name. The OnePad App doesn't Need Internet, or ANY Off Computer Connection, to be used, so It doesn't depend on Outside Comms Connection to work. The Stego App Does require a Way to get the Image Files into and out of the Computer but that could ALWAYS be done via File Transfers, using Memory Sticks, where the Comm Links were done with a different OS. I do NOT see your NIT, as a issue, when the Comm Links can be handled off the Computer, running the WinDoz OS.... ..... YMMV.... But Good Comments so far.... Keep them Comming....

 

If they want to have Comms within their Group, or with other Monkeys in their Region, then Yes, once the Internet No longer is available. Long Distance Comms would come, once those Comm Links can be established... Another reason, that we did not get fixed on the Comm Link Layer but stayed with the Secure Messaging Layer.... for this section of the Project....

 

As of yet, there is no plan for vetting operators (to say key holders.) There will be several layers of "cells" much the way that networks of resistance movements have operated in the past, none will know more of them than those in direct contact. Cell leaders will be responsible to vet their own contacts, and cutouts set up if a cell is compromised. We anticipate at least three layers.

The code does not require any particular operating system to run, nor is it dependent on the web. It can run by burro, smoke signal or foot soldiers. The foot soldiers don't need to know the code, nor does the homing pigeon, the code stands alone, needing only the right "key" to decipher by the recipient. Obviously, computers would be nice, as the size of the message could be very much larger than if pecked out in semaphore or Morse. At this time, we have no way to know what means of transmission will be available. The setup will be in place, but the means will be left to what's available when it happens.

Even with the web, it will take time to get operators on line, or the air, or whatever means will be left for comms. It is going to be quite a while if we are left to hams or pony express. Not all the details are fixed. Yet.

Stay tuned.

 

One thing to NOTE, here, about this technology. The Security of the Network of this System, does NOT depend on the Security of the technology, itself. The OnePad and Stego Apps, are not Public Domain, just Yet, but the messages SECURED by them, do NOT depend on knowledge of the included technology, or the Security of the Apps, themselves. It only depends on the Security of the Pads and Encryption Passwords that were used in creating the Coded Messages. The same is true for the GPG System. This System is based on Phil Zimmerman's work back, in 1991, and is in the Public Domain, due to Phil moving his code, and algorithms off-shore, where the US Government could NOT keep it secret or protected by the Export of Munitions Statutes, here in the USA. That code, and algorithms are in the Public Domain, and available for use and scrutiny, by anyone, but that does nothing to compromise the Security of any Messages encrypted using that System. The Security is ONLY compromised, by the loss of the individual KeySet used in the encryption process, for that Message. That is one of the Primary reasons for picking these particular Encryption Systems for the MonkeyNet Project. The Apps and technology can be spread far and wide but it does NOT compromise the Security Of the Messaging Systems. That only depends on the Security of the SPECIFIC KeySets, PADs, and Stego Keys for the particular Messages they were encrypted with, PERIOD.

 

If any of our Monkeys, would like to join the Beta Test Group, Pm "Me" and we will take it from there..... ......

 

The GPG Encryption System used as one of the sections of the MonkeyNet, is based on Phil Zimmerman's original PGP Code Base. Phil shipped his code and algorithms Off-shore, in the early 90s to get around the FEDs Munitions Export Statutes, and they have been Public Domain, on several Off-shore Servers ever since. The GPG Code Base, is Open Source, so it can be inspected, modified, or added on to, by anyone who has an interest. this also keeps Word Wide Snoopers (Including our own Letters Agencies) from installing BackDoors, Traps and other software "Gotcha's" into the Code Base under cover of darkness. There has NEVER Been a documented Case of a PGP Based message Cracked, EXCEPT ,by a near impossible to accomplish Brute Force approach, and that took Months of MASSIVE CPU Time, from a Massive amount of CPUs working the problem in Parallel. totally unrealistic in modern Communications parlance. It is the opinion of most cypher Specialists that for all practical purposes GPG is uncrackable, as is the OnePad System by nature.