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Title : Mandatory MIME Security Considered Harmful
Author(s) : D. Crocker
Filename : draft-crocker-mime-security-00.txt
Pages : 0
Date : 2002-11-4
MIME is the preferred Internet mechanism for labeling and aggregating bulk data objects, such as for email and the web, and it is essential to have useful, MIME-based mechanisms. Indeed, two standards have existed for some years: OpenPGP and S/MIME. A current IESG policy for new application protocols requires that they mandate conforming implementations to support a single security mechanism. For applications using MIME security, this means that the specification is required to choose between S/MIME and OpenPGP.
Although well-intentioned, the policy is at least useless and at worst
counter-productive. This note discusses the problem and suggests returning to the previously acceptable policy that better reflects the lack of market resolve for MIME security.
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-
