U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron Proposes Banning End-to-End Encryption

Andrew Griffin, reporting for The Independent:

David Cameron could block WhatsApp and Snapchat if he wins the next election, as part of his plans for new surveillance powers announced in the wake of the shootings in Paris.

The Prime Minister said today that he would stop the use of methods of communication that cannot be read by the security services even if they have a warrant. But that could include popular chat and social apps that encrypt their data, such as WhatsApp.

Apple’s iMessage and FaceTime also encrypt their data, and could fall under the ban along with other encrypted chat apps like Telegram.

This is a dreadful, oppressive, ignorant idea. There is no magic way to have encryption that only “good guys” can intercept. As for the fear that is driving this, I offer the words of Benjamin Franklin: “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”

★ Monday, 12 January 2015