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UK PM: Internet Must Be Regulated Following London Bridge Attack

n1 [soylentnews.org] writes:

By now, U.K. prime minister Theresa May’s response to terrorist attacks should be familiar: She and the Conservative party like to blame the Internet.

Tragically, there have been three major terrorist attacks in the U.K. in less than three months’ time. After the second, in Manchester, May and others said they would look into finding ways to compel tech companies to put cryptographic “back doors” into their services, so that law enforcement agencies could more easily access suspects’ user data.

May repeated her stance in broaders terms Sunday, following new attacks in London. “The Internet, and the big companies” are providing “safe spaces” for extremism, she said, and new regulations are needed to “regulate cyberspace.” She offered no specifics, but her party’s line, just days from the June 8 national election, is clear: a country that already grants its government some of the most sweeping digital surveillance powers of any democracy needs more and tougher laws to prevent terrorism (see “New U.K. Surveillance Law Will Have Worldwide Implications [technologyreview.com]”).

Source: MIT Technology Review [technologyreview.com]

Now Ms May says that she won't rule out simply "taking down" the "rogue internet companies" like China has.

"I think what we need to do is see how we can regulate," she told the Evening Standard, in response to a question on restrictions on the internet.

The prime minister was then asked if she would rule out "Chinese-style cyber-blocking action".

She only said that she would "work with the companies" and gave no explicit commitment that she wouldn't introduce censorship and restriction regimes like the ones that operate in China.

Source: The Independent [independent.co.uk]

Theresa May Wants to Deprive Terrorists of Online "Safe Spaces" (Can You Say "Encryption Backdoor"?)

takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

+security

Some things in life are very predictable... the Earth continues to orbit around the Sun and Theresa May is trying to crack down on the Internet and ban/break encryption [newscientist.com]:

In the wake of Saturday's terrorist attack in London, the Prime Minister Theresa May has again called for new laws to regulate the internet, demanding that internet companies do more to stamp out spaces where terrorists can communicate freely. "We cannot allow this ideology the safe space it needs to breed," she said. "Yet that is precisely what the internet and the big companies that provide internet-based services provide."

Her comments echo those made in March by the home secretary, Amber Rudd. Speaking after the previous terrorist attack in London, Rudd said that end-to-end encryption in apps like WhatsApp is "completely unacceptable" [newscientist.com] and that there should be "no hiding place for terrorists".

[...] "Theresa May's response is predictable but disappointing," says Paul Bernal [paulbernal.co.uk] at the University of East Anglia, UK. "If you stop 'safe places' for terrorists, you stop safe places for everyone, and we rely on those safe places for a great deal of our lives."

Last month New Scientist called for a greater understanding of technology among politicians [newscientist.com]. Until that happens, having a reasonable conversation about how best to tackle extremism online will remain out of reach.

End-to-end encryption is completely unacceptable? Now that's what I call an endorsement.

Prime Minister's statement [www.gov.uk]. Also at CNN [cnn.com], Foreign Policy [foreignpolicy.com], Ars Technica [arstechnica.co.uk], The Register [theregister.co.uk], and BBC [bbc.com] (emphasis mine):

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said on Sunday that tech firms needed to take down extremist content and limit the amount of end-to-end encryption that terrorists can use.

[...] The way that supporters of jihadist groups use social media has changed "despite what the prime minister says", according to Dr Shiraz Maher of the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation (ICSR) at King's College London. They have "moved to more clandestine methods", with encrypted messaging app Telegram [bbc.co.uk] the primary platform, Dr Maher told the BBC. Professor Peter Neumann, another director at the ICSR, wrote on Twitter: "Blaming social media platforms is politically convenient but intellectually lazy."

Previously: EU Rules Against UK "Snooper's Charter" Data Retention [soylentnews.org]
Theresa May's Internet Spy Powers Bill 'Confusing', Say MPs [soylentnews.org]
UK Home Secretary Stumbles While Trying to Justify Blanket Cyber-Snooping [soylentnews.org]
UK Wants to Ban Unbreakable Encryption, Log which Websites You Visit [soylentnews.org]
Data Retention in Australia: Still a Shambles Ahead of October Rollout [soylentnews.org]
UK Sheinwald Report Urges Treaty Forcing US Web Firms' Cooperation in Data Sharing [soylentnews.org]
UK Home Secretary: Project to End Mobile "Not-Spots" Could Aid Terrorists [soylentnews.org]
Open Rights Group To Take Government To Court Over DRIP [soylentnews.org]
House of Commons Approves UK Emergency Data Retention Law [soylentnews.org]
UK.gov Wants to Legislate on Comms Data Before Next Election [soylentnews.org]

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