ADMIN
A controversial proposal by the European Union to scan users' private messages for detection of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) poses serious risks to end-to-end encryption (E2EE), warned Meredith Whittaker, president of the Signal Foundation, which maintains Privacy-focused messaging service of the same name.
“Mandating mass scanning of private communications fundamentally undermines encryption. Full stop,” Whittaker said In a statement on Monday.
“Whether this happens, for example, by implementing an encryption algorithm's random number generation, or a key escrow system, or by forcing communications to pass through a surveillance system before being encrypted.”
The response comes as lawmakers in Europe are drafting regulations to combat CSAM with a new provision called “upload moderation” that allows messages to be verified before encryption.
Uractive's latest report published Audio communications that are excluded from the scope of the law and users must consent to this identification under the service provider's terms and conditions.
“Those who do not consent may still use portions of the Service that do not involve sending visual content and URLs,” it further reported.
Europol, in late April 2024, called on the tech industry and governments to prioritize public safety, warning that security measures like E2EE could prevent law enforcement agencies from accessing problematic content, reigniting the ongoing debate over the balance of privacy in the fight against serious crime. can do .
It calls on platforms to design security measures in such a way that they can still detect and report malicious and illegal activity to law enforcement, regardless of implementation specifics.
iPhone maker Apple famously announced implementation plans Client-Side Screening for Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), but it was phased out by the end of 2022. Privacy and Security Lawyers.
“For example, scanning for one type of content opens the door to bulk surveillance and may create a desire to search other encrypted messaging systems across content types,” the company said. said At the time, explained his decision. It also described the process as a “slippery slope of unintended consequences”.
Signal's Whittaker also said that calling the method “upload moderation” is a play on words that amounts to inserting a backdoor (or front door), effectively creating a security vulnerability to be exploited by malicious actors and nation-state hackers.
“Either end-to-end encryption protects everyone, and captures security and privacy, or it breaks for everyone,” he said. “And breaking end-to-end encryption, especially in such a geopolitically volatile time, is a disastrous proposition.”
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