Dive Brief:
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FBI Director James Comey and others are continuing to urge tech companies to allow investigators to decrypt private communications during terror probes.
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The tech industry maintains that strong encryption is necessary to protect users' information.
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Some tech CEOs believe Comey could be laying the groundwork for legislation that would force the companies to change their products.
Dive Insight:
Some members of Congress are threatening legislation to pressure tech companies to allow law enforcement access to encrypted information with a court order. But tech companies and privacy officials say strong encryption is critical to protecting privacy.
"As hacking schemes and cybercrimes against individuals, companies and governments have become daily occurrences, we have worked hard to keep pace," Apple's statement said. "We know that criminals will seek out encryption techniques or develop their own, so weakening encryption in consumer devices will only hurt law-abiding citizens who rely on it to protect their data."
Some tech companies have indicated they would be willing to help. John Chen, CEO of BlackBerry, said his company will be responsive to court orders, saying, "Our privacy commitment does not extend to criminals."
Though they are pushing for change, government officials acknowledge it may be tough to find a case where encryption prevented the thwarting of an attack.