Re: [Ilc] [saag] Distributed ledgers and control

On Wed, Mar 29, 2017 at 6:43 AM, David Mazieres <
dm-list-ietf-ilc@scs.stanford.edu> wrote
>
> Furthermore, the notion of a blockchain-esque public log can be
> leveraged for various forms of transparency.  For instance, last year
> there was a controversy in which Apple claimed to refuse an FBI request
> to sign a special compromised iPhone bootloader.  Unfortunately, for all
> we know, Apple may have signed the software after all while claiming not
> to for the PR benefit.  That they probably didn't yields the worst of
> both worlds--angering the FBI and still spooking potential customers.
> Requiring firmware updates to be published in a public log would allow
> the public to verify whether or not such activity is happening.

Just for those who may not be tracking this kind of work, this is something
that's starting to happen, though typically with semi-centralized consensus
mechanisms. In that form, it's generally known as "Binary Transparency".

See, for instance:

- https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/binary-transparency
and
- https://wiki.mozilla.org/Security/Binary_Transparency

-Ekr

> David
>
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