GoKawiilPhil Zimmermann's 1991 essay explains motivation for creating PGP encryption
In this reprinted 1991 guide (updated 1999), Phil Zimmermann describes why he built Pretty Good Privacy, arguing that email and electronic communication lack the inherent privacy once guaranteed by face-to-face conversation. He contends that government surveillance of digital communication is far cheaper and easier than intercepting paper mail or phone calls, prompting him to create software letting ordinary people encrypt their messages.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
Zimmermann frames privacy as a natural right undermined by technological change rather than a constitutional afterthought, suggesting that strong encryption tools are necessary to restore protections the law never explicitly needed before digital communication existed. His reasoning became foundational to later debates over encryption, government access, and civil liberties in the internet era.
- PGP was created by Phil Zimmermann and first documented in a 1991 user's guide.
- Zimmermann argues email lacks the natural privacy once provided by physical distance in conversation.
- He frames encryption as a tool to restore a right to privacy eroded by electronic communication.
YubiKey 5 NFC security key — If Zimmermann's case for PGP and personal privacy resonates with you, a hardware security key like the YubiKey 5 NFC is a great complement—it lets you store PGP/GPG keys securely on a physical device instead of your hard drive. It supports OpenPGP smartcard functionality directly, so you can sign and decrypt messages without ever exposing your private key to malware. It's a practical, modern extension of the same philosophy: keeping your communications truly yours.
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Published there as: “Why I Wrote PGP (1991, revised 1999)”
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