Thursday, October 23, 2014

FBI Director warns against Cellphone Encryption (Full video included)

FBI Director James Comey warned in stark terms Thursday against the push by technology companies to encrypt smartphone data and operating systems, arguing that murder cases could be stalled, suspects could walk free and justice could be thwarted by a locked phone or an encrypted hard drive.
Privacy advocates and technology experts called the concerns exaggerated and little more than recycled arguments the government has raised against encryption since the early 1990s.
Likening encrypted data to a safe that cannot be cracked or a closet door that won't open, Comey said the move by tech companies to protect user communications in the name of privacy is certain to impede a wide range of criminal investigations. New legislation to allow law enforcement to intercept communications is needed at a time of advancing technology and new forms of communication, he said.
"We have the legal authority to intercept and access communications from information pursuant to court order, but we often lack the technical ability to do so," Comey said in a Brookings Institution speech.
Comey cited particular cases in which he said access to cell phone data aided in a criminal investigation. But in a question-and-answer session after the speech, he said he could not cite particular instances in which someone was rescued from danger who wouldn't have been had law enforcement been blocked from that information.
Read the rest of the story HERE and view an watch Comey's full talk below:



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