Compliance Management, Government Regulations, Privacy

Google, Apple and others urge Obama to reinforce default encryption standards

Apple, Facebook and Google, along with dozens of other companies, civil society groups and security and policy experts, stressed the importance of rejecting legislation requiring new technology to include backdoors in a letter sent to President Barack Obama on Tuesday.

Instead, the writers suggested the White House focus on “developing policies that will promote rather than undermine the wide adoption of strong encryption technology.”

Strong encryption protects people against criminals trying to steal phones and laptops, spies trying to gain access to corporate secrets, and governments who might want to censor speech, they wrote.

The letter follows an intense grilling session by the Committee on Oversight & Government Reform in April in which both encryption supporters and law enforcement officials present their arguments.

Law enforcement claims encrypting devices by default could hamper investigations while others say there's no evidence to prove those assertions.

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