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26 May 1999. Thanks to CB/FIPR.
NEWS RELEASE : FOUNDATION FOR INFORMATION POLICY RESEARCH
=========================================================
(Notes for Editors, background information on
www.fipr.org)
FOR IMMEDIATE USE 26/5/99
The Cabinet Office Task Force on Encryption and Law Enforcement has
published its report at:
http://www.cabinet-office.gov.uk/innovation/1999/encryption/index.htm
Caspar Bowden, director of the Foundation for Information Policy Research
(www.fipr.org) agreed
with the report's conclusion that "key escrow as a
condition of licensing would not deliver to law enforcement agencies even
a
reasonable amount of assured access to decrypted communications."
Bowden said "it is a very thorough analysis, which clearly demonstrates why
public-key cryptography requires a new approach to interception and law
enforcement. The joint Government and Industry forum should be balanced by
independent civil liberties representatives, to consider how new Internet
policing methods may require new forms of oversight and safeguards. For
example, putting the onus on a person to prove that they DO NOT possess a
decryption key could lead to miscarriages of justice."
Official Summary of PIU report
==============================
"Developments in encryption technology, products and services carry
significant benefits in increasing consumers’ levels of trust in the
Internet, and particularly in e-commerce. However, they also give rise
to a number of challenges for law enforcement, where it will become
more difficult to derive intelligence from lawfully intercepted
communications and retrieved data. This report considers the
Government’s response to the issues of encryption, e-commerce and
law enforcement. The report is framed by two key objectives for
the Government:
*) to make the UK the best environment in the world in which to trade
electronically; and
*) to ensure that the UK remains a safe country in which to live
and work.
The task force concluded that no single technique or system was likely
to be enough to sustain law enforcement capabilities in the face of
rising use of encryption by criminals. This being the case, a package
of measures was needed to mitigate the consequences as set out below.
Recommendation
The voluntary licensing of providers of encryption services, proposed in
the
recent DTI consultation document on the forthcoming Electronic Commerce
Bill, will help improve consumers’ confidence and therefore support
the
development of e-commerce in the UK. However, these licensed providers
should not be required to retain ’decryption keys’ or to deposit
them with
third parties (i.e. no mandatory ’key escrow’). Whilst the introduction
of a
mandatory link between licensed providers of services and key escrow would
provide the best technical solution to many of the problems caused by
encryption, in practice it would not support achievement of both of the
Government’s objectives.
The Government should adopt a new approach based on co-operation
with industry to balance the aim of giving the UK the world’s best
environment for e-commerce with the needs of law enforcement. There is no
’silver bullet’ policy that guarantees that the development of
encryption will
not affect law enforcement capabilities.
*) A new Government/industry joint forum should be established to discuss
the development of encryption technologies and to ensure that the needs of
law enforcement agencies are taken into account by the market. This new
co-operation should also be promoted at the international level. The forum
should consist of a high-level group to discuss policy issues and be
supported
by specialist technical and legal groups.
*) A new Technical Assistance Centre should be established, operating on
a
24-hour basis, to help law enforcement agencies derive intelligence from
lawfully intercepted encrypted communications and lawfully retrieved stored
data. The Technical Assistance Centre will also be responsible for gaining
access to decryption keys, where they exist, under proper authorisation.
*) The task force welcomes the intention to include in the forthcoming
Electronic Commerce Bill provisions to allow lawful access to decryption
keys and/or plain text under proper authority. The task force also
recommended that further attention should be given in the Bill to placing
the onus on the recipient of a disclosure notice to prove to the authorities
that the requested keys or plain text are not in his possession, and to state
to the best of his knowledge and belief where they are.
*) The UK should encourage the development of an international framework,
including a new forum, to deal with the impact of encryption on law
enforcement."
--
Caspar
Bowden
http://www.fipr.org
Director, Foundation for Information Policy Research
Tel: +44(0)171 354 2333 Fax: +44(0)171 827
6534