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UK pulls back from clash with Big Tech over private messaging

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Re: UK pulls back from clash with Big Tech over private messaging

#101
post #87

I wonder where does this end? I do feel like nearly once a year some country in western world tries to ban encryption. Can we just make it a right to encrypt communications and be done with this endless debate?

let's let the UK do it

they've become the biggest laughing stock in multiple other avenues anyways, you need an example for people to learn from

one look at san fransisco and people start funding their police departments again

Re: UK pulls back from clash with Big Tech over private messaging

#102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This isn't true, is it? If so that's slightly terrifying.

The rules don't apply to them. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-66165001

The rules never apply to them.

Re: UK pulls back from clash with Big Tech over private messaging

#103
post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’d bet my life we start to see a massive influx of bad press aimed at messaging providers, focusing on how criminals are using their services, over the next few years. When the general sentiment of the average Dave is ‘encryption === bad’ this BS will rear its head again. Seems to have been the standard play for governments of this country for decades now.

They already deployed M&C Saatchi against it: https://www.techdirt.com/2022/01/19/uk-has-voyeuristic-new-p... https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/revealed-u... All about saving the children. From everybody except Prince Andrew, it seems.

I don’t remember seeing this campaign. Are there any links?

Re: UK pulls back from clash with Big Tech over private messaging

#104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The podcast starts with a kid interviewing parents who unanimously support the bill, calling it brilliant. If the podcast wants to say the thing, they should say the thing rather than its opposite.

I'm sorry you felt tricked by that dramatic device. Perhaps listen to end of the podcast to get closure.

Ya know, I actually upvoted your very-downvoted comment above, but if you’re going to hand out homework, make sure it’s not 1.25 hours long. If you have a point to make, make it; don’t outsource it to long-winded podcasters.

Re: UK pulls back from clash with Big Tech over private messaging

#105
post #87

I wonder where does this end? I do feel like nearly once a year some country in western world tries to ban encryption. Can we just make it a right to encrypt communications and be done with this endless debate?

It should be a fundamental human right to have and communicate secrets. That's the end of the story for me. There should be things the state simply cannot touch not just things which it should not touch.

Take a step back from communicating secrets. It should be a fundamental human right to perform math. That's what they're trying to ban. Some equations are apparently too powerful to be performed by lowly humans.

Re: UK pulls back from clash with Big Tech over private messaging

#107
post #87

I wonder where does this end? I do feel like nearly once a year some country in western world tries to ban encryption. Can we just make it a right to encrypt communications and be done with this endless debate?

let's let the UK do it they've become the biggest laughing stock in multiple other avenues anyways, you need an example for people to learn from one look at san fransisco and people start funding their police departments again

Did anyone ever actually cut their police budget? I was under the impression that the problems in SF were a combination of the police having their feelings hurt (and therefore refusing to do their jobs), and prosecutors refusing to actually prosecute anyone.

Re: UK pulls back from clash with Big Tech over private messaging

#109
post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

well, by definition if the key is to be used, and to be used more than once, it cannot be kept safe. The key has to go through multiple hands on its way from the senior government official responsible for its safekeeping to the peon assigned to unlock a specific phone at a specific point in time. It could be copied at any one of those points. No amount of technology or cryptography can solve the master key problem. T…

Doesn't this problem exist throughout the tech industry though? Microsoft, Google, Apple etc are keeping the keys that allow you to push updates secret, aren't they?

Yeah, but if we're honest all three of those companies are more competent than the UK goverment.

Source: sometimes interact with the UK government

Re: UK pulls back from clash with Big Tech over private messaging

#110
It’s not science or logic that convinced the UK government, one of the most determined enemies of the Internet. It’s that Meta showed it will follow up on threats when it removed all links to news sites in Canada.

UK politicians love WhatsApp’s end to end encryption as it allows them to evade public records laws (as well as snooping by UK spooks who have not hesitated to wiretap British Prime Ministers like Harold Wilson). Boris Johnson’s extensive use of WhatsApp specifically was in the news during the Covid inquiry.

It’s perfectly OK for the proles to lose encryption, but not for politicians.

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