Should states be allowed to ban encrypted phones?
What if you couldn't purchase an iPhone or Android device in your state due to the fact that the phone's data was protected by encryption? The controversy over encryption technology is becoming even more complicated as state and federal lawmakers face off over who should make the rules.
A new bill introduced in Congress aims to stop states from banning encrypted phones. The Ensuring National Constitutional Rights of Your Private Telecommunications Act -- the ENCRYPT Act of 2016, for short -- would deny states the power to block encrypted smartphone sales. It would also tell states they cannot require phone manufacturers to equip devices with a "back door" for accessing private user data, CNET reports.
The bipartisan bill is sponsored in the House of Representatives by Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) and Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-Texas).
"Having 50 states with 50 different encryption back doors standards or bans is a recipe for disaster for American privacy and competitiveness," Lieu wrote in an email to CNET. "This conversation belongs at the national level, where we can find a solution that protects the privacy rights of Americans and does not create additional vulnerabilities. The ENCRYPT Act makes sure that this conversation happens in a place that does not disrupt interstate commerce."
The controversy surrounds encryption built into smartphones the keep user data secure from third parties. In order to decrypt the data, your phone needs an encryption key, which is something that smartphone manufacturers don't have. It's designed to keep your data secure from hackers, but law enforcement and government intelligence agencies say it also interferes with their ability to access communications in the course of criminal or terrorist investigations.
FBI Director James Comey has expressed concern about the increased use of phone encryption without a way for officials to gain access when needed for national security or criminal investigations.
"Encryption is a great thing. It keeps us all safe. It protects innovation," Comey said at a hearing on Capitol Hill last summer. "It protects my children. It protects my health care. It is a great thing." But this week, he revealed an example of how encryption is affecting counterterrorism efforts. In testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee Tuesday, Comey said the FBI has been unable to access data on encrypted phones belonging to the couple behind the December San Bernardino massacre.
