Comment by upofadown
7 years ago
So the suggested solution for more secure email is just to give up on the concept of email entirely? Anything that does not do perfect forward secrecy is just pointless so there is no point in trying to keep significant discussions to refer to later. We are expected to return to a sort of virtual pre-writing stage.
This is not really helpful. For all its shortcomings, PGP is pretty much all we have. If used in a straightforward way it actually can protect email from nation state level actors for a significant time. That's gotta count for something.
I know right - they are all recommending Signal, Wire, WhatsApp, etc., but these aren't alternatives. They are all centralized, controlled by a single entity even if the underlying protocols are open. And you're right, they are instant messaging - ie. alternatives to Messenger, Hangouts, etc.
We need a modern email replacement that is decentralized, federated, et al. Something that keeps all the modern cryptographers happy, while facilitating the same kind of long form conversations and federated self-hostability that email provides.
I think Matrix is getting there, but even that is still focused on instant messaging.
As I've mentioned in another thread, I think we're more likely to get there via the route of E2EE documents collaboration tools. Something that cleanly breaks away from the email model, and adds enough value to make the switch worth the effort.