Normally I'm strongly in favor of strong encryption, but I've seen this line of reasoning before, and it makes me uncomfortable. Because, it feels like you could replace "encryption" with...
The cat's out of the bag, the genie's out of the bottle, and technology is not going away no matter how many laws you try to put in place. If you block something, or neuter something, some enterprising soul will come along and build a bridge over your moat or dig a tunnel under your wall. At this point, I'm truly surprised that politicians still believe the appropriate way forward is to force hard limits on tech. That sucking sound is all the money leaving their tech industry.
Normally I'm strongly in favor of strong encryption, but I've seen this line of reasoning before, and it makes me uncomfortable. Because, it feels like you could replace "encryption" with "privacy" and equally argue that privacy rights are dead, and any laws that try to mandate them, like the GDPR, are useless theatre that stiffles innovation. Companies will find some way to track you anyway, you might say.
However, I don't want to cede that privacy is dead; at least, not that easily. I think a better defense of cryptography focuses on our inability to safely and selectively break it, not so much on the economics of why it's important. When we focus on the dilemma that the idea of breaking encryption puts us in, we can choose our path forward that way. Moralless appeals to economic progress can justify some pretty wack stuff.
Perhaps new is relative. For someone born in 1990, the internet is not really new, they have likely known it all their life. For someone born in 1960, the internet is relatively new, considering...
Perhaps new is relative.
For someone born in 1990, the internet is not really new, they have likely known it all their life.
For someone born in 1960, the internet is relatively new, considering that they did not grow up with it. For them it is new (especially in its current form) and more difficult to understand.
The German minister of interior afairs, Horst Seehofer is possibly the worst person to have been put in charge of anything at federal level. This guy has 0 idea about digital things, or most other...
The German minister of interior afairs, Horst Seehofer is possibly the worst person to have been put in charge of anything at federal level. This guy has 0 idea about digital things, or most other things, and constantly pushes out garbage level laws. He's from the conservative wing of the christian-conservative bavarian party CSU, which is only relevant because of complicated historical reasons.
Luckily this is only a draft, so far, not a real proposal.
Normally I'm strongly in favor of strong encryption, but I've seen this line of reasoning before, and it makes me uncomfortable. Because, it feels like you could replace "encryption" with "privacy" and equally argue that privacy rights are dead, and any laws that try to mandate them, like the GDPR, are useless theatre that stiffles innovation. Companies will find some way to track you anyway, you might say.
However, I don't want to cede that privacy is dead; at least, not that easily. I think a better defense of cryptography focuses on our inability to safely and selectively break it, not so much on the economics of why it's important. When we focus on the dilemma that the idea of breaking encryption puts us in, we can choose our path forward that way. Moralless appeals to economic progress can justify some pretty wack stuff.
I always thought Germany had its shit together with regard to tech.. Apparently not.
Perhaps new is relative.
For someone born in 1990, the internet is not really new, they have likely known it all their life.
For someone born in 1960, the internet is relatively new, considering that they did not grow up with it. For them it is new (especially in its current form) and more difficult to understand.
The German minister of interior afairs, Horst Seehofer is possibly the worst person to have been put in charge of anything at federal level. This guy has 0 idea about digital things, or most other things, and constantly pushes out garbage level laws. He's from the conservative wing of the christian-conservative bavarian party CSU, which is only relevant because of complicated historical reasons.
Luckily this is only a draft, so far, not a real proposal.
Related document (In Dutch) : https://docs.google.com/document/d/17F-OxKJtR8DM9O8jiEfUhxDGguBnJoZ2-lvp9614CyM/edit
This seems very similar to the Assistance and Access bill in Australia.
Hopefully Germany can succeed where Australia failed so miserably.