In 1991, Phil Showed Us the Right Way To Send Mail … In 2019, We Are Still Stuck in the 1980s with Email

In 40 years, email is still the weakest link in security … so how can we stop email snooping?

In June, 1991, Philip Zimmermann created the first release of PGP (v1.0) [here]:

In a GDPR era, Phil could see the future clearly:

PGP empowers people to take their privacy into their own hands. There has been a growing social need for it. That’s why I wrote it.

Phil Zimmerman was one of the first to face up to defence agencies with his PGP software, which, when published in 1991, allowed users to send encrypted and authenticated emails. For this the United States Customs Service filed a criminal investigation for a violation in the Arms Export Control Act, and where cryptographic software was seen as a munition. Eventually the charges were dropped.

Why doesn’t the community push for better standards? Well, could it be that the status quo is a comfortable place to be for many corporations, and where they can snoop on their employees emails?