Encryption Won't Prevent Surveillance, Study Finds

Law enforcement officials argue that encryption is a threat to their ability to spot criminals and terrorists, but a new study argues that most new technology aimed at protecting privacy will not hinder surveillance efforts.The expansion of encrypted communications by companies like Apple and Google will block law enforcement from accessing some data, but the vast amount of online traffic will remain unencrypted according to the report published by a group of technologists at Harvard University’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society. Encryption will not become the norm because companies rely on access to consumer data as part of their business model, and because metadata like cell phone locations help networks operate, the authors point out. "Are we really headed to a future in which our ability to effectively surveil criminals and bad actors is impossible? We think not," the report states. “We argue that communications in the future will neither be eclipsed into darkness nor illuminated without shadow.”The study, entitled "Don't Panic: Making Progress on the 'Going Dark' Debate," alludes to the fears by numerous law enforcement groups ranging from police to the FBI that the expansion of encrypted communications will cause government monitoring of threats to "go dark."