The two articles chosen for this assignment are “Apple and Others Encrypt Phones, Fueling Government Standoff” by authors Barrett, Yadron, and Wakabayashi and “U.S. Tries to Make It Easier to Wiretap the Internet” by Savage. While both articles deal with the ability of the government to read encrypted messages, the former discusses this ability on cellular devices whereas the latter discusses this ability in terms of emails. While the government continues to attempt to pass legislature to make these devices and email threads available for the purpose of surveillance, the technology companies are working equally as diligently to stop any action from the government and increase the security on the devices that they develop. Both articles show both sides of the standoff which allows for the readers to develop their own opinion as to whether or not the government is going to far at this point or if the technology companies are aiding the criminals in avoiding detection.
The government has been put into place to protect the citizens from threats both foreign and domestic. However, the government cannot do this if the very citizens it aims to protect block the information that could eliminate the threats. The articles explain that the ability for the government to monitor these criminal activities is “going dark” as most organizations are no longer speaking over the telephone. The government claims that this is simply an expansion of the wiretap orders. Without this change, the citizens would be giving the criminals free run of the internet and the ability to organize massive attacks on the United States. In fact, the law enforcement agencies have went as far as stating that “a child would die, he said, because police wouldn’t be able to scour a suspect’s phone” (Barrett, Yadron, and Wakabayashi). This is because the encryption protects the information even once it has been confiscated. Therefore, the criminals are completely free from prosecution based on this evidence and the ability to track a terrorist or a kidnapper would be equally eliminated.
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However, there are also negative aspects to granting the government the ability to read encrypted messages and unlock cellular phones. First of all, these encryptions are not simply put into place as a means to halt the government but “some services encrypt messages between users, so that even the provider cannot unscramble them” (Savage). In other words, without these encryptions, anyone at the communications company would be able to read the private messages between users. There is also an increased concern as to how the consumer would view the companies if they agree to remove the encryptions. One company explained that “customer trust is a big issue at Apple” (Barrett, Yadron, and Wakabayashi). If the consumer cannot trust the company then the economy would suffer. This is an added concern as technology accounts for a large part of the consumer spending in the United States.
Personally, I can see both sides of the debate as being justified, but the fact remains that the government has been assigned a job. I do not believe that this is any different that the wiretapping of landline phones. There are regulations in place to protect the information of the average citizen while still allowing the government to endorse surveillance when necessary. Consumers did not stop purchasing land line phones when the wiretapping became a concern no more than they will give up their cellular devices. Plain and simple, the law enforcement agencies should have every tool available to catch a criminal without using these tools to monitor the average citizen.
- Barrett, Devlin, Danny Yadron, and DAISUKE WAKABAYASHI. “Apple and Others Encrypt Phones, Fueling Government Standoff.” WSJ. The Wall Street Journal, 18 Nov. 2014. Web. 10 June 2015.
- Savage, Charlie. “U.S. Tries to Make It Easier to Wiretap the Internet.” The New York Times. The New York Times Company, 27 Sept. 2010. Web. 10 June 2015.
