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[FYI] (Fwd) FT 29/9/2001: :"Home Office may allow interception of e-




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From:           	"Caspar Bowden" <cb@fipr.org>
To:             	"Ukcrypto" <ukcrypto@chiark.greenend.org.uk>
Subject:        	FT 29/9/2001: :"Home Office may allow interception of e-mails"
Date sent:      	Sat, 29 Sep 2001 04:46:34 +0100
Send reply to:  	ukcrypto@chiark.greenend.org.uk

http://globalarchive.ft.com/globalarchive/article.html?id=010929001554
&q uery=encryption NATIONAL NEWS: Home Office may allow interception
of e-mails ANTI-TERRORISM REVIEW: Financial Times; Sep 29, 2001 By
ROBERT SHRIMSLEY

Security agencies could gain new powers to intercept private e-mails
as part of the review of all anti-terrorist measures being supervised
by the Home Office. 

Downing Street confirmed yesterday the review would include a
re-examination of the new and controversial Regulation of
Investigatory Powers Act, which allows the interception of private and
encrypted e-mail and internet files. 

Details emerged after Jack Straw, the foreign secretary, railed
against those who had forced him to water down the act when he was
home secretary in the last parliament. 

He told BBC radio: "We needed the powers to de-encrypt commercially
sensitive e-mails because we knew terrorists were going to use it . .
. but the pressure was so great we had to back down a bit." 

He added: "I was told it was completely unnecessary and that it was
the beginning of 'big brother' society. But it was not 'big brother'
government, it was government trying to put in place increased powers
to preserve and safeguard our democracy." 

He said that before September 11 "people had a two-dimensional view of
civil liberties: the most fundamental civil liberty is the right to
life". 

One senior minister stressed that discussions were at a preliminary
stage, but added that a number of concessions that the government made
to the civil liberties and business lobby would be re-evaluated. "In
the light of recent developments and the incredibly fast pace of
technological advance it would be foolish not to see if there is any
more we can be doing," said the minister. 

The powers contained in the original measure were watered down over a
period of years after complaints both from civil liberties groups and
from those in business who warned it could drive internet companies
out of Britain. 

Among the first proposals to be shelved was one for what was known as
a "key escrow" - a plan to force companies to lodge the decryption
keys that allowed the deciphering of encoded internet material at a
central government-run repository. 

This would have given the security services access to the keys but
internet companies said it would discourage business from basing
itself in Britain. 

Ministers also agreed, under pressure of defeats in the House of
Lords, to boost the safeguards for confidential e-mails. The Home
Office agreed that demands for encryption and decryption keys would
have to be authorised by a more senior officer than originally
planned. 

The Confederation of British Industry urged caution on any changes,
saying: "We are very keen to have a balance between fighting terrorism
and the right to privacy." 

It added that the CBI would consult its members on the issue and would
be seeking more information from ministers on the government's plans.





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