Govt encryption claims are ‘delusional’
10 August 2023
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Commenting in response to Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan’s claim that the government is “not anti-encryption”, Matthew Lesh Director of Public Policy and Communications at free market think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs, said:
“The government’s claims on encryption are delusional. The Online Safety Bill empowers Ofcom to require scanning of private messages — undermining encryption and potentially leading the likes of WhatsApp and Signal to leave the U.K.
“There is no magic technological solution in existence or development that can protect user privacy while scanning their messages. It’s a contradiction in terms.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Contact: media@iea.org.uk / 07763 365520
In June 2022, the IEA published ‘An Unsafe Bill’, a briefing paper co-authored by Matthew outlining how the Online Safety Bill threatens free speech, privacy, and innovation online.
In April 2023, Matthew wrote in The Spectator, criticising the Online Safety Bill for undermining end-to-end encryption and highlighting the risk that it could force tech platforms like Signal and WhatsApp to quit the UK.
The mission of the Institute of Economic Affairs is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems. The IEA is a registered educational charity and independent of all political parties.
“The government’s claims on encryption are delusional. The Online Safety Bill empowers Ofcom to require scanning of private messages — undermining encryption and potentially leading the likes of WhatsApp and Signal to leave the U.K.
“There is no magic technological solution in existence or development that can protect user privacy while scanning their messages. It’s a contradiction in terms.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Contact: media@iea.org.uk / 07763 365520
In June 2022, the IEA published ‘An Unsafe Bill’, a briefing paper co-authored by Matthew outlining how the Online Safety Bill threatens free speech, privacy, and innovation online.
In April 2023, Matthew wrote in The Spectator, criticising the Online Safety Bill for undermining end-to-end encryption and highlighting the risk that it could force tech platforms like Signal and WhatsApp to quit the UK.
The mission of the Institute of Economic Affairs is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems. The IEA is a registered educational charity and independent of all political parties.
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