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Merged
frahlg merged 1 commit into from
Aug 31, 2026
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docs: tell the name's story — a relay that cannot testify #115

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9 changes: 9 additions & 0 deletions README.md
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Expand Up @@ -115,6 +115,15 @@ Attach several machines at once with `mir attach a b c`; press `Ctrl-O`, then
→ [`docs/release.md`](docs/release.md), [SECURITY.md](SECURITY.md),
[audit scope](docs/audit-scope.md)

## Why the name?

The Miranda warning: *you have the right to remain silent.* The relay in the
middle has no choice about it — it never sees your keystrokes, so it cannot
testify to what you typed, under subpoena or after a breach.

The other Miranda is Shakespeare's, on an island in *The Tempest*, seeing the
wider world for the first time: “O brave new world, that has such people in't.”

## Security in one screen

Miranda assumes the rendezvous relay is untrusted.
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8 changes: 8 additions & 0 deletions SECURITY.md
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Expand Up @@ -67,6 +67,14 @@ not normal deployment.

### Rendezvous relay

**A relay that cannot testify.** Miranda is named after the warning — *you have
the right to remain silent* — and the relay in the middle has no choice about
it: terminal bytes only ever reach it as Noise ciphertext, so it cannot testify
to what you typed, under subpoena or after a breach. That covers plaintext and
nothing more; the relay still sees the metadata listed below, still holds
encrypted registry blobs while an agent is live, and still persists owner-signed
revocation tombstones.

The relay matches owner/machine IDs, forwards one-shot SDP messages, bridges pairing
rooms, serves temporary TURN credentials when configured, retains encrypted
registry blobs only with live agent registrations, and persists owner-signed
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6 changes: 6 additions & 0 deletions docs/naming.md
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Expand Up @@ -14,6 +14,12 @@ on Prospero the magician's island, *"O brave new world, that has such people in'
— which fits the "definitely magic" tone and opens a thematic name system for the
components.

**Told in the product since 2026-08-31.** The warning story now opens the relay's
section in [`SECURITY.md`](../SECURITY.md) ("a relay that cannot testify") and has
a short "Why the name?" section in [`README.md`](../README.md), with one line of
the Shakespeare layer for warmth. Those two are the only places it ships; this
file stays the source and the full record.

## Criteria

- Short, memorable, pronounceable; brandable.
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