All DIRT communications are encrypted on their way back to the DIRT Control Center, protecting them in case they are intercepted by a random system administrator. Jones emphasizes that surreptitious surveillance tools, such as Back Orifice and keystroke logging facilities, are illegal to develop or possess in the United States, according to U.S. code 2512. These tools are illegal even if they are used by network administrators unless each end user explicitly agrees to the monitoring. DIRT is legal because it is a law enforcement tool that can only be sold to law enforcement agencies. DIRT itself is not a threat to the average corporate network, but the knowledge that such a tool exists should make users consider whether their networks are secure.
Security is clearly a relative term, and organizations ignore security issues at their own risk.