SoylentNews

takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

The Crypto War continues with U.S. Senator from Arizona John McCain calling for a ban on any encryption that can't be decrypted by government request [tomshardware.com]:

McCain called for new legislation that would not regulate a backdoor into technology services, but instead would prevent companies from adopting end-to-end encryption. Companies would have to always keep the key that would decrypt the users' data anytime the government requests it.

This could stifle some innovations, not just in messaging platforms, but also in industries such as healthcare [tomshardware.com], where new technologies have appeared that would either allow patients to be the only ones that can decrypt their medical records, or it would allow companies to encrypt the data in a way that they could still use the data in aggregate, but they wouldn't be able to look at individual records.

Such systems could ensure that the data is essentially unhackable. This type of technology could prevent many of the large data breaches we've seen over the past two years, where hundreds of millions of people had their information stolen.

Senator McCain dismissed this as a concern, and actually seems to believe that such encryption is harmful to security, not helpful:

"We have to encourage companies and individuals who rely on encryption to recognize that our security is threatened, not encouraged, by technologies that place vital information outside the reach of law enforcement. Developing technologies that aid terrorists like Islamic State is not only harmful to our security, but it is ultimately an unwise business model."

The Senator didn't explain why exactly strong encryption would be an "unwise" business model for companies. So far, strong encryption seems to have worked quite well for companies such as Apple, who have pushed forward on the technology despite calls from FBI's chief, James Comey, to remove that type of encryption from iPhones and iPads.

Senator McCain also warned that we shouldn't allow "safe spaces" for terrorists online. This is a message that has also been mirrored by Comey, as well as the UK's Home Secretary, Theresa May, who has been promoting the Investigatory Powers bill [tomshardware.com] that tries to force companies to "remove encryption" when asked by the government.

Previously: California Lawmaker Tries Hand at Banning Encryption [soylentnews.org]

Original Submission