From warlord at MIT.EDU Fri Jul 30 14:29:55 1993 From: warlord at MIT.EDU (Derek Atkins) Date: Fri, 30 Jul 93 14:29:55 PDT Subject: Public Key Servers In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <9307302128.AA00604@toxicwaste.MEDIA.MIT.EDU> > Are the key servers listed in the PGP documentation still active? Yes, they are active. > And if so, what is the general opinion of using them? It depends what you are trying to get to here? The keyservers were created as a way to implement out-of-band key distribution. They provide an easy way for you to get someone's key before initiating contact with this person. The key-servers do not do any key authentication, leaving the validity-checking up to the end user. It does leave a few things open, namely, anyone can see who has keys on the servers. But once a US-legal PGP does come out (RSN, I believe), it won't be as big a deal. I hope this helps. -derek