The Server Knows Nothing: Designing Emergency Apps With Nothing to Subpoena
ReadyNow! is an emergency response app designed to help immigrant communities in the United States in the event of ICE/CBP detention. In a crisis moment, the app can notify trusted contacts and help trigger a pre-planned response. But building an emergency tool for vulnerable communities comes with a paradox: the very act of using the app can expose not just the user, but their loved ones, their community, and their broader contact network. Jason will explain how the app set out to ensure that it would never become an “arrest bingo card” – a system that quietly maps relationships and risk. This talk is a case study in designing “security-first” systems where the adversary isn’t hypothetical, and where metadata and contact graphs are as sensitive as message content. The central technical and product challenge will be explored: how do you send messages on someone’s behalf without the organization ever knowing the message or the recipients? The talk will go through the design constraints that led developers to keep data encrypted and local to the device, and to deliberately build a system with minimal server-side visibility. Finally, a problem that’s often ignored in security engineering will be covered: opaque security doesn’t make users feel secure. For people facing real-world threats, trust requires clarity. The tradeoffs between safety, functionality, and observability will be discussed, and practical lessons for building high-risk apps that are secure by design – and legible enough for users to believe – will be shared.
Saturday 1200 Gramercy Park Suite