Dead Drops: The Future is Offline?

With all the fear and uncertainty created by the NSA’s pushes into the privacy of every day life, it is understandable that someone would think of a way to share information in an offline manner. Well, that may not be the intended purpose of the Dead Drop Project, but I like to believe that the project fulfills that role. For those of you who don’t know what a Dead Drop is, a Dead Drop is a storage device, typically a USB drive, that is embedded in a wall and acts as a site where anyone can drop off files or upload the files stored on the drive.

The purpose of the Dead Drop Project is kind of obscure. The author of the project, Aram Bartholl, only hints at it in his manifesto.

Dead Drops is an anonymous, offline, peer to peer file-sharing network in public space. Anyone can access a Dead Drop and everyone may install a Dead Drop in their neighborhood/city. A Dead Drop must be public accessible. A Dead Drop inside closed buildings or private places with limited or temporary access is not a Dead Drop. A real Dead Drop mounts as  read and writeable mass storage drive without any custom software. Dead Drops don’t need to be synced or connected to each other. Each Dead Drop is singular in its existence. A very beautiful Dead Drop shows only the metal sheath enclosed type-A USB plug and is cemented into walls.You would hardly notice it. Dead Drops don’t need any cables or wireless technology. Your knees on the ground or a dirty jacket on the wall is what it takes share files offline. A Dead Drop is a naked piece of passively powered Universal Serial Bus technology embedded into the city, the only true public space. In an era of growing clouds and fancy new devices without access to local files we need to rethink the freedom and distribution of data. The Dead Drops movement is on its way for change!

Catch all that? He uses a lot of words to explain what a Dead Drop is and only suggests the project’s purpose at the very end.

In an era of growing clouds and fancy new devices without access to local files we need to rethink the freedom and distribution of data. The Dead Drops movement is on its way for change!

This can be taken in a few different ways. I wish the author had been more specific as to the purpose of the project, but where’s the fun in that? Now we get to have fun interpreting what the project’s purpose is. And, truly, there is a difference between the project’s purpose and the actual consequences stemming from the project. This only adds to the excitement.

So, let me give my interpretation of the above quote. It seems that Aram Bartholl wants to create a storage space apart from clouds where people can freely access and share localized files. Sounds simple enough. But what about the Dead Drop itself?

A Dead Drop is invulnerable to hacking attempts via wireless signal. Unfortunately, it is vulnerable to ill-tempered people with hammers. Don’t think plugging a Dead Drop drive into your device is perfectly safe. Unscrupulous people are sure to have thought of all kinds of nasty ways to ruin your device or steal your information, so plug in at your own risk.

Still, I like the idea, or my interpreted idea, behind the project. Additionally, remember what I said about the actual consequences as opposed to the intended consequences of the project? Here is just one consequence, intended or otherwise, stemming from the implementation of Dead Drops.

Today, and increasingly so, the harboring and spread of certain ideas has severe social and financial repercussions. People are fired from their jobs, harassed, and even socially ostracized for possessing unpopular ideas. Therefore, a high premium is paid for anonymity. People want to be free to express themselves and share their ideas. Dead drops are a perfect way to do so and, unlike online dropboxes and pastebins, dead drops are far more anonymous. This isn’t to say that pastebins don’t offer a fair level of anonymity; I’m just saying that dead drops have the potential to be far more anonymous.

That’s what I believe this project is all about: the free spread and possession of ideas and information in an anonymous fashion.

So, is the future offline? Well, not entirely, but I’m glad the option is out there. Free thought is dangerous to the powers that be. We need a safe and secure way to spread our information and ideas. I believe that the Dead Drop Project is just the beginning, or simply a continuance, of a collective endeavor to create as many information channels as possible.