According to TechDirt, a report from European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) Giovanni Buttarelli argues for a ban on encryption backdoors.
Excellent.
But that is not all…
The new rules should also clearly allow users to use end-to-end encryption (without ‘backdoors’) to protect their electronic communications.
Decryption, reverse engineering or monitoring of communications protected by encryption should be prohibited.
That is taking the issue far. Very far. Maybe so far as to kill the report altogether in the EU institutions.
I cannot imagine politicians prohibiting all forms of attempted decryption, under all circumstances. Europol would go bananas. The EPP and S&D groups in the European Parliament would never accept it. And I imagine the Commission would never put forward such a proposal.
Just focusing on banning backdoors, however, is a totally different issue – that might stand a fair chance to become EU policy.
Then we have this…
In this context the EDPS also recommends that the Commission consider measures to encourage development of technical standards on encryption…
This could be understood as the EU encouraging encryption in general. That would be a good thing. Or as if the EU should take some sort of control over the development of encryption. That would be really bad.
Frankly, I’m not sure what to make of parts of this report.
But, at least, this is a clear stand against backdoors – from an EU data protection bigwig.
/ HAX
TechDirt: EU Data Protection Official Says Revised Privacy Laws Should Ban Backdooring Encryption »
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