Backdoor closes, for now, on crypt0 plan, John Rendleman. In the United States, the House Energy and Commerce Committee recently defeated a proposal that would have required encryption products to include a 'backdoor' for law enforcement officials. In its place, the Commerce Committee approved a more moderate amendment, even though the Bill is just one of several under consideration by the group. The defeat, while encouraging to those who view widely available strong encryption as a precursor to mass adoption of electronic commerce, does not guarantee that Congress will pass any encryption legislation this session. The defeated amendment was vigorously opposed by privacy advocates and the Internet, telecommunications and computer industries. Proposed as a substitute to the Security and Freedom through Encryption (SAFE) Act, the amendment would have reversed SAFE's intent by requiring encryption software to include 'key recovery' techniques for police investigators.
The Commerce Committee also preserved the original language of the SAFE Bill that proposes freeing encryption software from current US export controls. The new amendment increases the legal penalties for those caught using encryption techniques as part of a crime, and calls for a six-month study on the effectiveness of'key escrow' techniques proposed by law enforcement agencies, as well as prohibiting the Government from requiring key recovery schemes.