Encryption Rules Coming

[John Young <jya@pipeline.com>]

   Financial Times, December 21, 1995, p. 4.


   Encryption rules to be prepared

   By Andrew Jack in Paris

   Representatives of international business and government
   yesterday agreed to draw up guidelines on encryption, a
   system which allows computer users to transmit information
   electronically with little risk that it can be intercepted
   and understood by unauthorised "hackers".

   The meeting, which was held at the International Chamber of
   Commerce in Paris, could lead to formal propositions
   prepared jointly by business and government organisations
   that could be ready by as soon as next summer.

   Yesterday's meeting did not have any formal legal
   authority, but was highly significant as the first forum
   where so many representatives of governments businesses and
   computer experts met to discuss developments in encryption.

   Highly sophisticated encryption technology already exists
   in a number of countries including the US and Sweden. In
   the US, companies already have access to these programs. A
   growing number of businesses -- led by the banking sector
   -- are demanding access to these programs.

   However, many governments, including that of the US, have
   resisted permitting the technology to be exported because
   they fear it will fall into the hands of organised crime
   and terrorist organisations.

   They have demanded that they should be able to "hack" into
   computer transmissions for counter-intelligence and
   criminal investigation work, in the same way that they can
   conduct telephone-tapping exercises.

   An important conclusion of yesterday's Paris meeting was
   that business agreed in principle to allow such hacking to
   take place as long as sufficient safeguards were in place
   and "electronic search warrants" had been issued with
   proper judicial approval.

   A number of governments appear willing to permit relaxation
   of export controls on sophisticated encryption devices as
   long as these safeguards are in place.

   Among the issues that experts on both sides need to resolve
   are the ways in which "keys" allowing computer
   transmissions to be decoded would be handled.

   A number of business organisations have discussed the use
   of third-party organisations, which would be independent of
   government, would have the keys and would hand them over to
   government investigators when demands were justified.

   However, the organisations still have to resolve a number
   of issues, including how these custodians could be made
   legally liable for any unauthorised access to this
   information and for the costs of its misuse.

   [End]

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   Does anyone have press reports or more information on this 
   meeting? Any connection to the recently signed Transatlantic
   Agenda?