Napolitano: I don't use email at all

http://techdailydose.nationaljournal.com/2012/09/napolitano-i-dont-use-email-at.php

by ra5cal • 14 years ago

40 41 14 years ago

techdailydose.nationaljournal.com

jaryd• 14 years ago

This reminds me of the SOPA discussions when some of the panel members openly stated (I think with a chuckle) that they weren't sure how this whole "Internet" thing worked... I don't know much about Napolitano's abilities in this arena, but it seems to me that an important part of being an influencer and a decision maker is knowledge not entirely gleaned from research, briefings, and PSAs.

zdw• 14 years ago

The DHS should be broken back up and most of the sub-agencies should be done away with (I'm looking at you TSA).

Much like the military, it's a solution in search of a problem, and it'll manage to find problems in places where none exist, or where it's presence is inappropriate and unjustified.

dfc• 14 years ago

The military is a solution in search of problem? Seriously?

I am assuming that getting rid of most of the DHS sub-agencies was an exaggeration. But I can not understand why you would say the military is a solution in search of a problem.

4ad• 14 years ago

And I can not understand how can you not say the military is a solution in search of a problem.

ta12121• 14 years ago

    The military is a solution in search of problem? Seriously?

Not 100%, but to an extent it is. The US has this giant military that's way bigger than needed just for self-defense. It's going to want to do things, whether those things need doing or not, to justify its existence.

jandrewrogers• 14 years ago

For those that do not understand the subtext, the reason Napolitano does not use email is that there is no persistent, written record with her name on it that can be used as evidence against her. This is a common strategy/policy used by many people, particularly among the political class. It is an excellent way to inject ambiguity into any potential culpability.

It is a common practice for people that wish to minimize evidence trails should things come to that. Don't conflate "don't use" with "ignorant of". It is a voluntary choice.

BklynJay2• 14 years ago

Why does she go on to say that some might call her a "Luddite"? This would imply that she doesn't believe in technology, which could logically be extended to perhaps include "understand" technology.

reitzensteinm• 14 years ago

The implication in that sentence is that people may assume she is a luddite, but they would be wrong in doing so.

starpilot• 14 years ago

Because she's throwing around the term casually, like people do? "I'm really OCD about this" ≠ actual self-diagnosis of OCD

ams6110• 14 years ago

I'd feel pretty comfortable saying that no cabinet-level official really "understands" technology enough to make decisions on cybersecurity. They rely on subordinates who (hopefully) do.

jeffchuber• 14 years ago

This is also exactly why she should be forced to use email. Any appointed government position should come under extra public scrutiny.

msh• 14 years ago

Should all her face2face conversations be recorded too?

anigbrowl• 14 years ago

You know every policy decision is committed to aper and that most of them are discoverable in the federal register, right?

brown9-23• 14 years ago

Why should someone be forced to use one mode of communication when all of her written communication (memos, etc) is already on the record? This sounds silly.

revelation• 14 years ago

Of course, some government officials aren't quite so smart and seek to just circumvent any recordkeeping system by using private email accounts hosted by 3rd parties [0].

[0] http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20070551-503544.html

sliverstorm• 14 years ago

Hey, that strategy is just fine if nobody knows about the account. That can be difficult to maintain though.

randomfool• 14 years ago

That's only a reason to avoid government email- personal email remains personal (which is why Sarah Palin allegedly conducted so much 'state' business via personal email).

It concerns me that the one in charge of protecting so much is so isolated from what they are protecting. I often worry that the proposals to protect the Internet do more harm than good, and I wish those in charge had more vested interests.

systemtrigger• 14 years ago

> personal email remains personal

If you believe that, why cite Palin's Yahoo! account as an example?

> [Napolitano is] isolated from what [she is] protecting

Her choice is congruent with the limitations of the protocol, and for that I respect her.

fluteflute• 14 years ago

Interestingly, the UK has just clarified that personal email/texts can be made public - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-19775763

taw9• 14 years ago

Perhaps it could also be argued that she doesn't use it because she understands it too well... Come on, you think that new NSA station in Utah is limited to foreign surveillance?!

fpp• 14 years ago

Very right - it's called accountability.

At the same time (at least in Germany) they want to force citizens to use email (accounts) where they have complete control of the servers / infrastructure it is provided from.

In the US they are e.g. strangling GAO that has at least in the past created some level of accountability for government dealing. Other means of oversight are also step-by-step turned into false fronts.

If you go from email (for which regulations for record keeping exist) to other means of electronic communications (e.g. rt-messaging, encrypted messaging with personal / keys linked to your gov. position) you at best increase the efforts for recovery to a level that it becomes infeasible in most cases or make it impossible when [due to strange coincidence] the crypto-keys have been lost.

Guess it more-and-more becomes clear where this is leading to in the long run - zero accountability and arbitrary state power where you have to prove that something is not right (which you then of course can't).

skym• 14 years ago

My first reaction wasn't anger, it was jealousy.

freditup• 14 years ago

I don't see any problem with any elected official not using email. I don't care if they avoid technology for the most part. (I know this may lead to them not being informed about technological issues, and this is a negative, but I'd rather have them be knowledgeable in other areas.)

What is a problem is that the DHS secretary would be so disconnected from technology. I personally think that the US is still quite vulnerable to cyberattacks, and that this should be a major national security priority. (It's possible cyberdefense is kept under tight secrecy and there's a whole lot more of it than I'm aware of.)

riffic• 14 years ago

>elected official

who voted for her?

alid• 14 years ago

Intriguing! It makes perfect sense given the nature of her role and position, but I'm curious how she operates at such a strategic level without it - if not to send messages, to receive them? I thought mobile networks would be just as liable to be tapped? What tools would they use to communicate?

brown9-23• 14 years ago

I'm curious how this affects the people beneath her as well - if their communication patterns have to be altered to fit in with the boss.

chmars• 14 years ago

Many other officials don't use mail either – they've staff doing their communication for them … and for the remaining very private communication, they often use personal telephone calls, SMS and so on. That's simply how (at least older or less tech-savvy) officials work.

willholloway• 14 years ago

George Bush didn't email either, he didn't want anyone reading 'his personal stuff'.

I always suspected he was trying to avoid Nixon's mistake of leaving the tape recording machine running that LBJ installed in the Oval office. I didn't like it then and I don't like it now.

Americans deserve full transparency from their government.

That said, with the adversarial nature of party politics and the limited sophistication of the public's political consciousness, not creating a persistent record may be a rational and understandable choice, even for a public servant with nothing to hide and every reason to feel proud of the work that they do.

brown9-23• 14 years ago

Interestingly, George W Bush used to be big on personal email but decided to put a stop to it before he was inaugerated: http://gawker.com/5089305/presidents-gotta-give-up-the-e+mai...

I think though that his reasoning is not as cynical as you make it out - there would be some concern that personal email sent to the President from friends, family etc would fall under the official records act.

netdog• 14 years ago

email is a useful messaging system.

However, email is not: 1) a reliable messaging system, 2) a secure messaging system, 3) a private communication conduit.

Napolitano: I don't use email at all

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