[Cryptography] UK's Investigatory Powers Bill can 'force' decryption

[Henry Baker]

FYI --

http://motherboard.vice.com/read/investigatory-powers-bill-apple-encryption

UK's National Crime Agency: Yes, We Could Ask Apple to Remove Encryption

Written by JOSEPH COX  CONTRIBUTOR

April 19, 2016 // 10:38 AM EST

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"A tweet from Silkie Carlo, from campaign group Liberty, stated that Farrimond had said the agency could 'force' Apple to remove encryption."

"Farrimond responded with his own tweet, also clarifying that he said 'request.'"

[Ha, ha!  Ignoring such a request will usually result in a 'Ferguson' moment.]

"Elsewhere in the over 250-page bill are sections referring to the removal of 'electronic protection' of data.  This has been widely interpreted by tech companies and civil liberties groups as a legal capability to force firms to strip customer's devices or communications of encryption."

"This position sits at odds with the reality of how many encryption systems work today.  Increasingly, companies are putting encryption keys in the control of individual users, meaning that even the firm typically cannot obtain plain-text data itself."

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