Privacy

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[EFF] Today The UK Parliament Undermined The Privacy, Security, And Freedom Of All Internet Users (www.eff.org)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Summary

The UK Parliament has passed the Online Safety Bill (OSB), claiming it will enhance online safety but actually leading to increased censorship and surveillance. The bill grants the government the authority to compel tech companies to scan all user data, including encrypted messages, to detect child abuse content, effectively creating a backdoor. This jeopardizes privacy and security for everyone. The bill also mandates the removal of content deemed inappropriate for children, potentially resulting in politicized censorship decisions. Age-verification systems may infringe on anonymity and free speech. The implications of how these powers will be used are a cause for concern, with the possibility that encrypted services may withdraw from the UK if their users' security is compromised.

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[–] [email protected] 26 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

They don't need to backdoor end-to-end encryption when they can instead snoop at the endpoints (e.g. the apps).

Governments can force service providers to either do that or no longer operate in their jurisdiction.

This won't stop especially knowledgeable people (including criminals) from using encrypted comms, but it will make it much harder to access for everyone else, thereby robbing the general population of an essential safety tool, among other things. It's terrible for democracy and dangerous to vulnerable populations. The article is worth reading.