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from the nothing-to-hide-vs-none-of-your-business dept.
The New York Times published an interesting story about the fears of the current FBI director:
The director of the F.B.I., James B. Comey, said Thursday that federal laws should be changed to require telecommunications companies to give law enforcement agencies access to the encrypted communications of individuals suspected of crimes.
... Mr. Comey warned that crimes could go unsolved if law enforcement officers cannot gain access to information that technology companies like Apple and Google are protecting using increasingly sophisticated encryption technology.
“Unfortunately, the law hasn’t kept pace with technology, and this disconnect has created a significant public safety problem,” he said.
Mr. Comey said that he was hoping to spur Congress to update the 20-year-old Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, which does not require companies to give law enforcement direct access to individuals’ communications.
The F.B.I. has long had concerns about devices “going dark” — when technology becomes so sophisticated that the authorities cannot gain access to them. But now, Mr. Comey is warning that the new encryption technology has evolved to the point that it could adversely affect crime solving.
The kicker is this line:
“Those charged with protecting our people aren’t always able to access the evidence we need to prosecute crime and prevent terrorism, even with lawful authority."
Of course, it should be no surprise to the FBI why so many people are going "dark" and using things like Tails. For decades, the government has proven time and again that it can't be trusted to act lawfully and constitutionally. The FBI is responsible for more than its share of that. So naturally those who can are going to take steps to protect their privacy and Apple and Google, among others, are simply responding to that demand.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Friday October 17 2014, @02:40PM
It's a damage control blitz by Comey. If encryption goes mainstream, the FBI's job gets harder. People are starting to see through his argument, but he is going to continue to whine about it in hopes of preventing adoption or other companies from following suit.
Criminals, drug lords, pedos, terrorists, murderers. If they don't get caught because of encryption or other security and anonymity technologies, that's just a sign that the technologies are working. Cry me the Potomac, Comey.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 17 2014, @05:08PM
Old Testament allows men to marry female children.
Read deuteronomy 22 28-29 in hebrew.
(Score: 2) by tathra on Friday October 17 2014, @06:26PM
yes, but back then puberty was your midlife crisis. the idea that something more than just puberty is required to be considered an adult is an extremely recent one, emerging along with life spans beyond ~30 years.
the "sex crime" laws are ridiculous though, with people getting convicted as a sex offender for sending naked pictures of themselves, and for turning 18 during a committed multi-year relationship, and for picking up a at a bar only to find out she was using a fake ID (why doesn't the bartender get charged for serving alcohol to a minor in these cases?). we need to get a handle on that shit before its too late.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday October 18 2014, @12:18AM
Many in government are coming to a realization that the law has gone too far in the area of sex crimes. There was an interesting op-ed in the New York Times recently that called for a new approach to dealing with pedophiles, treating them as people with a mental disorder, not necessarily as a sex crime.
Having said that, people ought to be held accountable for their actions, but child pornography laws are clearly overblown these days. The feds ought to be working hard at putting the people who produce that shit and those who run the distribution networks in prison, not necessarily its consumers. Treat the consumer as someone who needs psychological therapy.