[kevkrom]

The one place where the analogy to postal mail breaks down, however, is that most email users make absolutely NO effort to keep their messages private. Without using encryption on their messaging, it’s the equivalent of sending postal mail solely on postcards instead of in envelopes.

[American_Centurion]

equivalent of sending postal mail solely on postcards instead of in envelopes

Still, it's not legal for you to open someone's mailbox to read any postcards you may find in there. I'm pretty sure that the feds would have to have a warrant to look at it when it's at the post office. IANAL, so I could be wrong.

But I DO encrypt email I expect SOME privacy on, as should others.

[HaveHadEnough]

The one place where the analogy to postal mail breaks down, however, is that most email users make absolutely NO effort to keep their messages private. Without using encryption on their messaging, it’s the equivalent of sending postal mail solely on postcards instead of in envelopes.

I totally disagree. Encryption should be analogized to writing postal mail in code.

[xzins]

But it wasn’t addressed to the government.

The same with my snail mail in the garbage can. Just because it’s dumped doesn’t make it, in my mind, addressed to them.

[AFreeBird]

Yep, personal mail via postcard, that's what unencrypted email is.

What gets me is that PGP is out there, and for the most part free, for all computing platforms. And while it may, or may not hold up to the the scrutiny of the NSA Cray Acres, it's a start.

We should all start getting friends and family to start using it.

[Ken H]

The one place where the analogy to postal mail breaks down, however, is that most email users make absolutely NO effort to keep their messages private. Without using encryption on their messaging, it's the equivalent of sending postal mail solely on postcards instead of in envelopes.

I don't get the postcard analogy. Don't you have to click on an email to open and read it? That seems the equivalent of opening an envelope.