Cellular providers need to know your location in order to deliver calls and text message to your phone. But it turns out that they really don’t need to know who you are to give you that service. They only need to know how to bill you – and that information can be at little as knowing your ZIP+4 code. Why do we give so much personal information to our mobile service providers when we don’t have to? Today, Nick Merrill, founder of Phreeli, will explain how he can give you top notch cell service and know almost nothing about you.

Interview Notes

• Phreeli: https://www.phreeli.com/ 
• Double Blind Armadillo: https://www.phreeli.com/files/PhreeliDoubleBlindArmadilloWhitePaper.pdf 
• Wired article: https://www.wired.com/story/new-anonymous-phone-carrier-sign-up-with-nothing-but-a-zip-code/ 
• Call Detail Record: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Call_detail_record 
• 2600 Magazine: https://www.2600.com/ 
• Zero-Knowledge Proofs: https://firewallsdontstopdragons.com/how-zero-knowledge-proofs-work/ 

Further Info

• My book: https://fdsd.me/book 
• My newsletter: https://fdsd.me/newsletter 
• Support the mission: https://fdsd.me/support 
• Give the gift of privacy and security: https://fdsd.me/coupons 
• Get your Firewalls Don’t Stop Dragons Merch! https://fdsd.me/merch 

Table of Contents

• 0:00:12: Intro
• 0:02:25: Zero Knowledge Proofs!
• 0:03:35: Lingo
• 0:07:29: How did you come to found Phreeli?
• 0:15:08: Who is your target audience?
• 0:19:18: How can you get by with just ZIP+4?
• 0:24:10: Is Phreeli more private, say, Mint?
• 0:28:33: How do I recover my Phreeli acccount?
• 0:30:22: What identifiers are tied to cell phones?
• 0:37:12: Can Phreeli work law requires KYC?
• 0:41:09: How do you separate billing from service?
• 0:47:23: How can a cellular provider hide a user’s location?
• 0:51:44: Do telecom networks have inherent privacy problems?
• 0:55:30: How do you handle lawful intercept?
• 0:59:13: How do you convince the skeptics?
• 1:02:19: What’s the current feature roadmap?
• 1:04:19: Wrap-up
• 1:08:59: Patron podcast preview
• 1:10:35: Looking ahead