[6902] in cryptography@c2.net mail archive
[FYI] 'Draconian' Crypto Ideas Still Exist
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Axel H Horns)
Tue Apr 11 16:08:29 2000
From: "Axel H Horns" <horns@t-online.de>
To: cryptography@c2.net
Date: Tue, 11 Apr 2000 21:51:48 +0100
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http://www.currents.net/newstoday/00/04/10/news10.html
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Daily News
'Draconian' Crypto Ideas Still Exist
By Sylvia Dennis, Newsbytes
April 10, 2000
While the Clinton administration has relaxed the international export
of encryption technologies, there are still some other "draconian
proposals" in the pipeline, according to the Electronic Privacy
Information Center's (EPIC) third annual report on the state of
encryption policies.
The report, titled "Cryptography and Liberty 2000: An International
Survey of Encryption Policies," said, however, that the movement
toward the relaxation of regulations of encryption technologies has
largely succeeded.
[...]
Despite these advances, EPIC said that the battle for secure and
private communications is not yet won. Its research found that some
countries are now proposing "lawful access" requirements that would
force users to disclose keys or decrypted files to government
agencies.
Others, meanwhile, are considering proposals that give intelligence
and law enforcement agencies new powers to conduct surveillance,
break into buildings or hack computers to obtain encryption keys and
obtain information.
EPIC said that law enforcement and intelligence agencies are also
demanding and receiving substantial increases in budgets. These new
powers and budgets raise concerns about the expansion of government
surveillance and the need for public accountability.
Wayne Madsen, a senior fellow with EPIC, said that the majority of
countries around the world are not interested in controlling
encryption.
However, he added, a few nations are now proposing surreptitious and
covert methods for obtaining private keys and access to encoded
communications.
Marc Rotenberg, EPIC's executive director, said that the report will
contribute significantly to the ongoing discussion about the right to
communicate freely and in private in the digital age.
"Strong encryption is critical for the development of networks that
will safeguard personal communications," he said.
An online version of the report is available on EPIC's Web site at
http://www2.epic.org/reports/crypto2000 .
Reported by Newsbytes.com
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