Merrill’s plan is to create an ISP that can use technologies like point to point communication and encryption in order to shield its users from data mining and also from government requests for information. Now you might be thinking that simple items like encrypting the data is not enough and you would be right. You see if an ISP encrypts your data then the FBI can ask them to decrypt it without your knowledge. However holds the keys can unlock the doors as it were, with Merrill’s solution his ISP would not have the encryption keys the end user would. This way they could not be forced to decrypt your data without your consent (in theory). So all of your end to end communication and even any emails you might store would be encrypted with a key generated by you.

To get at this data the FBI or other agency would have to serve a warrant directly on you before it could demand that you decrypt your data. Nine times out of ten this is not going to be a worthwhile endeavor so unless they have some VERY compelling information they are not going to come after the end users (not to mention they would have to issue a separate warrant for each and every person).

To prevent another legal mess with another snooping agency Merrill wants to not be able to comply with any request. If they do not own the data or the keys to the encryption, they cannot give anything over to the authorities The Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act says;

Right now the ISP is still in the planning and fundraising stages, but Merrill has managed to get some rather impressive people on an advisory board. The list of names includes; Brian Snow a former NSA technical director, Sascha Meinrath from the New American Foundation and Jacob Applebaum from the Tor Project.

Merrill is working hard to get the funding needed to get his project off the ground and we hope you will help us in supporting this project. If you want to learn more about the Nicholas Merrill and the new Privacy First ISP you can head over to The Calyx Institute which is the non-profit organization that will be running the new and ground breaking ISP. You know, the funniest thing about this type of network is that it might actually be considerably more secure than the open networks that the big ISPs and Telecoms are maintaining now… Of course, we are sure that our concerned lawmakers will try to invent laws to prevent this type of corporation, but for now this is something we can certainly get behind.

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