2010-11-05, 10:05 PM
Uhhh, the way you wrote the definition of the article is fearmongering to say the least.
The government wants the ability to decrypt/descramble communications if given a court order allowing them to do so. This means, for instance, if Skype can help the government catch criminals, Skype must give the government the decryption keys that they can use to decrypt the packets. The government knowing how to decrypt it will reduce the security of it - that much is uncontested. The more people that know how to decrypt something, the more vulnerable that something is.
The internet will stay decentralized.
Encryption can continue as usual.
Already the government can subpoena that an ISP release who is behind certain IP addresses, release your e-mails to the FBI, and release search history and chat logs to courts who request them. Why is this the nail in the coffin? Why will this kill the internet more than anything else the government has already done? As much as I love strong encryption, I don't see how this is a bad thing or how it overextends the government's ability to do its investigative work.
The government wants the ability to decrypt/descramble communications if given a court order allowing them to do so. This means, for instance, if Skype can help the government catch criminals, Skype must give the government the decryption keys that they can use to decrypt the packets. The government knowing how to decrypt it will reduce the security of it - that much is uncontested. The more people that know how to decrypt something, the more vulnerable that something is.
The internet will stay decentralized.
Encryption can continue as usual.
Already the government can subpoena that an ISP release who is behind certain IP addresses, release your e-mails to the FBI, and release search history and chat logs to courts who request them. Why is this the nail in the coffin? Why will this kill the internet more than anything else the government has already done? As much as I love strong encryption, I don't see how this is a bad thing or how it overextends the government's ability to do its investigative work.