Having just run a post, where the ICO is promoting it’s Child Code, a very effective way of protecting children, the very next article I read whilst researching the cyber security and privacy news this morning was this:
EU Plan to Scan Private Messages for Child Abuse Images Puts Encryption at Risk | WIRED UK
You can bet the politicians have been told this will not work, but if they think there are votes in this then they will go for it. The UK Government has been going through examining ways to keep citizens safe online – the bill is with the House at the moment:
Online Safety Bill – Smart Thinking Solutions
However reducing every law abiding citizen’s access to private communications, private from law enforcement, private from government and private from hackers is no way to deal with law breakers. Law enforcement has due process, and laws that prohibit child abuse, you can get the support of the judiciary if you have evidence and then get warrants . Use them.
Do the politicians think they will catch more offenders this way – they will catch the stupid. The smart will switch their communications to other more secure means. They could even go back to the 1960’s technology of leaving coded messages on public toilet walls. Are we going to ban public toilets?
Don’t misinterpret this blog, I support any reasonable technology measure, that will actually catch the offenders and bring them to justice. But not at the expense of everyone else’s privacy and security. Whatever steps the politicians put in place to “guarantee our privacy” when the remove E2EE, will not work – insiders will abuse their positions, hackers will find ways around it, etc, etc.
(I was going to put some links here to law enforcement, both officers and civilians, abusing crime data bases, mortuary technicians distributing videos, trusted officials abusing trust for money, and even Solarwind’s security breach at source – but you get the picture.)
To catch these offenders, will take time and ingenuity of behalf of law enforcement, cyber and cryptography experts, with the support of the law abiding community. Not quick fix laws that impact all of us and catch few offenders but open all of us to cyber-attack by the hackers out there.
Smart Thinking Solutions supports this UK Government initiative:
Let’s stop abuse together – Stop Abuse Together (campaign.gov.uk)
Clive Catton MSc (Cyber Security) – by-line and other articles
Further Reading
Online Rights of the Child – Smart Thinking Solutions
Online Safety Bill – Smart Thinking Solutions
Europe proposes tackling child abuse by killing encryption • The Register
