Photo by JASPER JACOBS/BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty Images
European police chiefs are calling for industry and governments to take urgent action to limit end-to-end encryption.
In a joint statement with Europol, they say that the use of the technology means that companies will not be able to respond effectively to requests from law enforcement, nor be able to identify or report illegal activity on their platforms.
"Our homes are becoming more dangerous than our streets as crime is moving online. To keep our society and people safe, we need this digital environment to be secured," said Europol executive director Catherine De Bolle.
"Tech companies have a social responsibility to develop a safer environment where law enforcement and justice can do their work. If police lose the ability to collect evidence, our society will not be able to protect people from becoming victims of crime."
In the statement, they say that they are particularly concerned about users who have a sexual interest in children, exchange images of abuse and seek to commit contact sexual offenses. They also cite terrorism, human trafficking, drugs smuggling, murder and economic crime.
And they suggest that there need not be a binary choice between cyber security or privacy on the one hand and public safety on the other.
"Absolutism on either side is not helpful. Our view is that technical solutions do exist; they simply require flexibility from industry as well as from governments," the statement reads. "We recognize that the solutions will be different for each capability, and also differ between platforms."
Meta is singled out by some authorities for its decision to implement end-to-end encryption across its Messenger platform.
According to the U.K.'s National Crime Agency, reports from Meta have helped the NCA and UK police safeguard around 1,200 children and arrest around 800 suspects every single month. However, it says, the vast majority of reports—92% from Facebook and 85% from Instagram—that are currently shared with UK police each year will be lost as a result of this decision.
Meanwhile, one stream of data provided by tech companies in response to warrants helped lead to 327 arrests, the seizure of 3.5 tonnes of Class A drugs, the recovery of £4.8 million ($5.9 million), the identification of 29 previously unknown threats to life, and a further 100 threats to harm, all between January and March this year.
In one example, a firearms armorer, who was storing multiple weapons and ammunition, was identified and arrested before they entered criminal circulation.
"Encryption can be hugely beneficial, protecting users from a range of crimes. But the blunt and increasingly widespread rollout by major tech companies of end-to-end encryption, without sufficient consideration for public safety, is putting users in danger," said NCA director general Graeme Biggar.
"They cannot protect their customers as they are no longer able see illegal behavior on their own systems. Child abuse does not stop just because companies choose to stop looking."
The declaration was agreed at an informal meeting of European police chiefs hosted by the NCA last week, and has been ratified by the U.K. and 27 EU member states, along with Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
Meta says it uses ‘numerous measures’ to help protect young people in both encrypted and unencrypted environments.
"The overwhelming majority of Brits already rely on apps that use encryption to keep them safe from hackers, fraudsters, and criminals. We don’t think people want us reading their private messages so have spent the last five years developing robust safety measures to prevent, detect and combat abuse while maintaining online security," says a spokesperson.
"We recently published an updated report setting out these measures, such as restricting people over 19 from messaging teens who don’t follow them and using technology to identify and take action against malicious behavior. As we roll out end-to-end encryption, we expect to continue providing more reports to law enforcement than our peers due to our industry leading work on keeping people safe."
