No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honor and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.
—Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article twelve
Before we look at how to use Openswan to secure and protect your communications, we will first go over a little of the history of cryptography, and the reasons why we are now able to discuss and use a technology that was until recently considered a vital military secret. Three important events made this possible: the creation of the Internet, the (re)invention of public key cryptography, and the creation of free-to-use software.
Another important issue we will cover in this chapter is the legal side of using Openswan. While the creators of Openswan grant everyone the right to use the product, some governments have additional laws governing cryptography. Before you use, give, or sell Openswan, you should make sure it is legal for you to do so. Though the authors are no lawyer, we hope this chapter will provide enough information for you to properly consider this aspect.