Yes, this is an affirmation that encrypted data is a sign of
guilt until law enforcement determines that it is not, that is,
when the data has been decrypted and evaluated. It is not
a far step to also claim that use of encryption devices and 
programs, passwords and biometrics, would also be signs
of guilt of a suspect until proof of innocence is provided that 
satisfies authorities.

I do not know what legal authority there is for holding onto
encrypted data that cannot be shown by law enforcement 
to be any of the five things listed in the FBI affidavit. Mere
encryption is not a crime, is it?

This development is similar to anti-circumvention provisions
of the DMCA in that innocent circumvention is by definition
not acceptable to copyrighted content authorities.

This demonization of encryption and circumvention until they
have been exorcised by official and commercial authorities 
is similar to the provision which allows the NSA to collect and 
retain encrypted communications forever, even that of US 
Persons, no matter what purpose unerlies encryption use,
though collection of non-encrypted communications of US 
Persons is proscribed.

This open-endedness of stigmatizing crypto is diabolically
wondrous, for it places the burden of innocence on anyone 
who attempts to exclude oversight of authorities of personal
information. And reminds of the terrible deeds of the medieval 
church -- spying, ratting and testifying on neighbors, inquisition, 
torture, execution of those who defied supreme authority, not by
physical actions but by words of dissent, words plainly
understood in comparison to the arcane Latin of the secret
keepers of privilege, luxury and perquisites.

Try to imagine that all national security information was open
from birth and only became secret by common judgment of
its value, rather the reverse policy now in effect by which a
small cadre of secrecy priests maintain a cloaked procedure
for deciding what the citizenry can know. And that anyone
who defies this culture of secrecy shall be considered guilty
before trial and public judgment.

Reply via email to