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I don't know that the layperson sees them as interchangeable. Private, to me, merely says that the goal is for this to be for my eyes only. Secure tells me that they've gone to extra steps to ensure that that privacy is upheld.

It's like if someone has a private office versus a secure office. One is a room with a door on it, the other is a room with a security guard.

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Privacy and security seem orthogonal to me.

Privacy is only one thing of many that could be assured via security. Imagine an office with glass walls, very little sound insulation, and a security guard at the door. The security guard and walls prevent physical attacks on the office occupant, thus ensuring their physical security, but it'd be difficult to say that office is private.

Is iPhone private? Apple says it is. Yet Apple also has the keys to user iCloud data. I agree that with proper metaphor the distinction becomes very clear, but in the open I’m not so sure if this distinction is well-defined, well-used, or well-understood.

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