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The UK Government is reportedly preparing a PR blitz against end-to-end encryption:
Meta recently said that it would implement end-to-end encryption in Facebook Messenger and Instagram by 2023, despite strong opposition from governments in the UK and elsewhere. However, the UK Home Office is reportedly planning an ad campaign to mobilize public opinion against end-to-end encryption using what critics called "scaremongering" tactics, according to a report from Rolling Stone.
The UK government plans to team up with charities and law enforcement agencies on a public relations blitz created by M&C Saatchi advertising agency, the report states. The aim of the campaign is to relay a message that end-to-end encryption could hamper efforts to curb child exploitation online.
"We have engaged M&C Saatchi to bring together the many organizations who share our concerns about the impact end-to-end encryption would have on our ability to keep children safe," a Home Office spokesperson told Rolling Stone in a statement. The government has allocated £534,000 ($730,500) for the blitz, according to a letter sent from the Home Office in response to a freedom of information request.
(Score: 5, Interesting) by Thexalon on Tuesday January 18 2022, @04:37PM
You're right that there's marxist-veneer authoritarianism, and fascist-veneer authoritarianism, and both of those can and do get a lot of people killed. Would-be kings always like to dress up their absolute authority in whatever veneer will make them popular enough to gain military control over their target territory, after which their popularity doesn't matter so much and they can just do whatever they had really wanted to do in the first place. It also makes a significant difference as to which people get killed or enslaved or otherwise mistreated depending on what variety of authoritarian regime you're dealing with, e.g. some regimes target minority groups, other regimes target intellectuals that might say something against the regime.
There's also important differences between the right-wing decentralization idea (a.k.a. what Americans call libertarianism), and the left-wing decentralization idea (anarchism): Right-wing decentralization types often want to distribute or even eliminate government authority, but regularly advocate (at least in my experience) for authority structures within households (usually "dad's in charge and everyone has to obey him, mom rules over the kids when dad isn't around") and also generally favor strong authority structures in business where, for instance, the only recourse for employees unhappy with their treatment or compensation is to quit. Left-wing decentralization types also want to distribute or eliminate government authority, but also oppose hierarchies within households beyond "adults set boundaries for kids for their own safety until they're able to negotiate reasonably with their parents" and are seeking less hierarchical ways of organizing the economy like worker-owned co-ops and such.
And note this has very little to do with specific political parties or political figures. Both parties and politicians are more likely to be authoritarian than not simply because anybody who seeks out a position that puts them in charge of things is somebody who believes in some people being in charge of what other people are doing.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.