Amber Rudd has got it backwardsencryption is key to defending our civil liberties – Prospect

End-to-end encryption allows journalists to speak to sources, and lawyers to their vulnerable clients. We mustn't let a climate of fear impinge on our right to speak privately by Edward Siddons / August 3, 2017 / Leave a comment

Amber Rudds approach to encryption ignores how many people use it for innocent means. Photo: PA/Prospect composite

Since the gruesome attacks in Westminster and Manchester, end-to-end encryption has become something of a buzzword for the beleaguered government. In a recent article for The Daily Telegraph, Home Secretary Amber Rudd has returned to the fray in the most apocalyptic of terms: The enemy online is fast. They are ruthless. They prey on the vulnerable and disenfranchised. They use the very best of innovation for the most evil of ends. This measure, like all other digital surveillance measures, is a matter of national security. In the seemingly never-ending war of us versus an increasingly amorphous them, civil liberties promise to be the first casualty.

In a confused and confusing piece, Rudd dismisses a blanket ban on encrypted messaging, instead proposing specific, targeted surveillance. Despite her claims to the contrary, such measures would require a backdoor, a hole in the encryption software which government and tech companiesnot to mention hackerswould be able to exploit. Renate Simpson, Chief Executive of civil liberties group Big Brother Watch, has characterised Rudds remarks as at best nave, at worst dangerous.

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Amber Rudd has got it backwardsencryption is key to defending our civil liberties - Prospect