> Should we also outlaw high-performance cars because these sometimes serve as effective getaway vehicles for criminals?
What if we change the last bit after the "because" to "these sometimes are used at unsafe speeds and, intentionally or not, kill people who are not in cars?"
Because, at least for me, the answer is an unambiguous yes.
I agree that privacy and security should be available to everyone. But we also shouldn't count on being able to find people who are doing vile things--to children or adults--because the person messed up their opsec. I think Apple is correct here but as an industry we have to be putting our brains to thinking about this. "To outlaw large sections of mathematics" is hyperbole because we use mathematics to do a lot of things, some useful and some not.
>But we also shouldn't count on being able to find people ... because the person messed up their opsec.
How is this different from how police find anybody else who commits a crime? Like if they're trying to solve a murder, they're looking for DNA, clues, etc... They're literally looking for where the person who committed the crime "messed up their opsec" to use your wording.
Governments and law enforcement agencies have access to more information than they've ever had before. They have more cameras, location data, tons of data compiled by data brokers. But it's not enough - of course they have to have this too.
On top of that, there's a long history now of governments buying zero day vulnerabilities or even technology from firms like NSO and guess what? It's not being used to catch pedophiles (cue shocked Pikachu face) but it is being used to target political dissidents.
This is so frustrating, because it feels like a siege on a city. Collectively, people have to fight against bad legislation in various countries constantly. But the other side only has to "win" once.
I'd say that "we" as an industry should be putting out brains to trying to figure out ways to make it even harder for these people to legislate encryption out of existence, than trying to find ways to appease geriatric lawmakers.
I think it just takes some outside-the-box thinking. Compromising E2EE is a much easier solution, but there has to be a harder, yet better one. We can't just sidestep important rights for convenience's sake; the right to privacy is being eroded in so many ways that it must be actively safeguarded. If it needs better detective work, so be it.
What if we change the last bit after the "because" to "these sometimes are used at unsafe speeds and, intentionally or not, kill people who are not in cars?"
Because, at least for me, the answer is an unambiguous yes.
I agree that privacy and security should be available to everyone. But we also shouldn't count on being able to find people who are doing vile things--to children or adults--because the person messed up their opsec. I think Apple is correct here but as an industry we have to be putting our brains to thinking about this. "To outlaw large sections of mathematics" is hyperbole because we use mathematics to do a lot of things, some useful and some not.