Are Terrorists Using Encrypted Messages to Get Past Authorities?

Now, Comey said at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Wednesday morning, extensive conversations with tech companies have persuaded him that “It’s not a technical issue”.

Even if a Judge were to issue a court order, Comey said strongly encrypted messages would still be unreadable for law enforcement. “As I’ve said many times, we don’t give a rip about politics”.

Comey pleaded for tech companies to change the design of smartphones and other electronic devices to allow for de-encryption of data under a court order. “Encryption’s always going to be available to the sophisticated user”.

Authorities haven’t confirmed whether the attackers used encrypted communications to coordinate the attack, but ISIS sent out a claim of responsibility first on Telegram, an app known for its high level of encryption.

He said the deadly attacks in Paris last month and California last week confirm radical Islamic terrorism continues to be a threat, whether that is politically correct or convenient for President Obama.

“The government doesn’t want a backdoor”, Comey said.

“Anybody’s view about an investigation they’re not involved in is irrelevant”, Comey said, and promised that the White House would not influence the investigation.

“The question of whether the answer is compelling them to do that by legislation is one that I can’t answer sitting here”, he said. “The government shouldn’t be telling people how to operate their systems”.

“I think this world is really changing in terms of people wanting the protection and wanting law enforcement, if there is conspiracy going on over the Internet, that that encryption ought to be able to be pierced”, Feinstein said.

“I have real concern about that”, Feinstein argued.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) is vowing to lead the charge on legislation that would require companies to decrypt data under court order.

Blaze cited a recent paper he wrote with other computer scientists that concluded that any mandates for law enforcement access to encrypted communications would likely “introduce unanticipated, hard-to-detect security flaws”.

“The FBI would not be able to gain access to those communications between terrorists-even with a court order” Cornyn asked. “I have concern about a Playstation, which my grandchildren might use and a predator getting on the other end talking to go them, and it’s all encrypted”. The server passes on the coded message to the intended recipient, who is the only person who holds the key to reading it. Instead, Comey is asking for the tech company to retain a readable version of that initial message, just in case.