Given the unencrypted email and phone traffic is now likely to be intercepted by state intelligence services, and given that services like Skype probably have backdoors that render their encryption ineffective, would anyone be interested in trying out Silent Circle: a new encryption platform backed by Phil Zimmerman, creator of the original PGP?
According to the people running the service:
We do not have the ability to decrypt your communications across our network and nor will anyone else – ever. Silent Phone, Silent Text and Silent Eyes all use end-to-end encryption and erase the session keys from your device once the call or text is finished. Our servers don’t hold the keys. Our encryption keeps unauthorized people from understanding your transmissions. It keeps criminals, governments, business rivals, neighbors and identity thieves from stealing your data and from destroying your personal or corporate privacy. There are no back doors in our systems, nor will there ever be.
The service costs $20 per month and includes encrypted phone, text, email, and video chat capabilities. In recognition of how such services only become useful once they have a certain base of subscribers, each subscription lets you also sign up one friend for the service for free.
The way the Silent Circle telephone system works is still useful, even if both people don’t have accounts.
If a Silent Circle subscriber calls a non-subscriber, the portion of the call between the subscriber and the Silent Circle server is encrypted. That means any sort of interception that only looks at that person’s outgoing traffic will only intercept encrypted communication.
There are no outgoing calls from Silent Circle to the general telephone system yet. If they offer outgoing calls to landline and cellular phones within North America, I could see them being able to find a base of subscribers at a moderate monthly fee.
Silent Circle is a German Eurodisco band that was formed in 1985. It has three members, vocalist Martin Tychsen (Jo Jo Tyson), keyboardist & composer Axel Breitung, and drummer Jürgen Behrens (CC Behrens).
Our Secure Calling Plan features:
* Unlimited local and domestic calling to the US,Canada and Puerto Rico outside the Circle
* High Definition (HD) voice quality
* Video Chat capability similar to FaceTime or Google Chat – only BETTER and SECURE!
* Download From the Apple iTunes App Store or the Android Market (Coming Soon)
* Easy Installation – Easy of use, just like your normal iPhone call buttons
* Private Encrypted Phone Number – A personal individualized phone number for your Secure Calls
* Free Worldwide Secure Encrypted phone calls over WiFi networks
* Peer-to-peer calling as well as calls outside of the circle to any number
* Uses existing contacts and favorites information on your device – Complete functionality
* Super Connectivity – works on existing 3G, 4G cell phone networks and WiFi
Lavabit competitor Silent Circle shuts down its secure email service, destroys servers
Silent Circle, a secure communications company founded by PGP creator Phil Zimmerman, has pre-emptively shut down its secure, encrypted email service and destroyed the servers so that it cannot be forced to reveal its customers’ secrets to NSA spooks.
…
“We’ve been thinking about this for some time, whether it was a good idea at all. Today, another secure email provider, Lavabit, shut down their system lest they “be complicit in crimes against the American people.” We see the writing the wall, and we have decided that it is best for us to shut down Silent Mail now. We have not received subpoenas, warrants, security letters, or anything else by any government, and this is why we are acting now. “
To Our Customers