“[Signal] would absolutely, 100% walk rather than ever undermine the trust that people place in us to provide a truly private means of communication,” Whittaker told the BBC. The Online Safety Bill, which is currently before Parliament, aims to address online harms and give more powers to Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, including the ability to fine tech executives for non-compliance. An important point of focus is curbing the spread of child sexual abuse material. However, the UK government and encrypted messaging service providers are at odds over the consequences of changing how the latter deploys end-to-end encryption (E2EE).
UK Govt Says Bill Won’t Ban End-to-End Encryption
The UK government intends to hold messaging services responsible for removing child sexual abuse material from their platforms. Officials say the goal is not to ban encryption. However, pedophiles hiding behind end-to-end encryption are having a negative effect on child safety. “E2EE, without adequate child safety measures in place, risks blinding companies to the abuse of children occurring on their platforms. And it will also prevent law enforcement from accessing the critical information that is required to ensure children are safeguarded from abuse, and those who seek to abuse them are brought to justice,” a UK Home Office factsheet reads. The new bill mandates messaging services to scan and locate child sexual abuse material. One way of doing so is by implementing client-side scanning like Apple proposed in 2021. However, Apple canceled the initiative after a backlash. “Our view is that it is possible to implement E2EE in a way that ensures our children remain safe online, whilst persevering the right the privacy,” the factsheet adds.
Cheap Tech Solutions Can’t Fix Complex Social Problems
Whittaker told the BBC that expecting privacy just for the good guys is “magical thinking.” “Encryption is either protecting everyone or it is broken for everyone,” she explained. Whittaker argued that client-side scanning would open up phones to mass surveillance by corporations and governments. Also, implementing any other backdoors will also leave phones at risk of exploitation by malicious actors. Addressing a complex social issue such as child abuse would require more funding for child protection services, Whittaker noted. Interested in discovering other truly private messaging apps? Check out our article on the best encrypted messaging apps in 2023. You can also read our detailed guide on Signal to learn more about its safety features.
