Posted Monday, September 15, 1997

Much has been said recently about the need for secure encryption and electronic privacy as it relates to the expansion of the Internet and the growth of electronic commerce. Unfortunately, most of the discussion on this topic has been in highly technical terms which are undecipherable (or of no interest) to the average person (including myself).

What's the Big Deal?

A lot of people perceive encryption as something illegal, practiced by crazed hackers trying to break into some secret government computer or a Swiss bank. This is hardly the case.

When you write a personal letter to someone, do you write it on a postcard? Or do you write it on a piece of paper and seal it in an envelope?

Encryption for e-mail is merely licking that envelope, nothing more. It assures that only the recipient of the letter is able to read it.

As the phenomenal growth of networked computers continues, more and more of our daily transactions will be done electronically. For the predicted growth of electronic commerce to really occur, individuals will have to feel reasonably confident that their credit card number or other personal information is not out there in plain view for anyone and everyone to see. Strong encryption is what makes this possible.

Check out Bill Gates' letter to Dave Winer of Userland Software on the subject of privacy.

Do you give the local police department the keys to your home?

This is a little more down-to-earth analogy of what we're talking about. Forget all the eye-glazing techno-speak about bit streams and encryption algorithms. The recent spate of proposed anti-encryption legislation, specifically, the just-defeated Oxley amendment to the SAFE (Security and Freedom Through Encryption) bill, would require individuals to hand over the keys (the code) to their private electronic communications to the authorities, to be held "in escrow."

These keys could be used at virtually any time by law enforcement, without your knowledge, if they wished to read your e-mail. Another analogy here would be the mandatory installation of surveillance cameras in all new homes, which could be switched on remotely by the police if they suspected you were up to no good.

From www.cdt.org's Crytography Issues page:

"The bill now must be reconciled with versions approved by four other committees before moving to the House floor. House Rules Committee Chairman Gerald Solomon (R-NY) has stated that he will not bring SAFE up for consideration unless it contained the Oxley-Manton amendment. As a result, it is unlikely that the bill will be voted on by the House any time soon."

Does This Sound Eerie?

George Orwell's classic, 1984, described a totalitarian future in which the government ("Big Brother") eavesdropped on its citizens at will. Many people assume that this sort of thing could never happen in the United States. Hopefully that is correct. However, the ongoing introduction of anti-privacy/anti-encryption legislation (largely sponsored by the FBI) threatens to establish a dangerous precedent and to undermine our basic consitutional freedoms.

Faulty Logic

The FBI and various members of Congress promoting anti-privacy legislation are trying to make a big case for encryption as the tool of terrorists. They fail to mention that "bad guys" can easily find ways to pre-encrypt their messages and still thwart law enforcement. In the meantime, their proposal for holding citizens' keys in escrow creates a new target for hackers and criminals -- the very government databases that would hold your personal keys. This will have more disastrous results than a terrorist group sending its members encoded messages.

What to Do?

Even if you are not currently interested in using encryption for your e-mail, check out the link below, or visit the Electronic Frontier Foundation website, or the Center for Democracy & Technology website. Write a letter or call your congressperson. There are many lists and links on these sites which will provide information on who you may contact.

Remember, this is not about some science-fiction future -- this is about your rights and your privacy as we march bravely into the digital future.