All Americans – including both company executives and law enforcement officials across the nation – want to keep our country safe and secure. This shouldn’t be a shocking statement, but so often we hear the debates around encryption, privacy, and data security framed as a battle between law enforcement or intelligence agencies and tech innovators in Silicon Valley. This doesn’t need to be the case. Starting with the shared commitment to individual liberty, including freedom from harm, I believe we can chart a path forward that improves privacy and data security while keeping all of us safer from physical threats.
In our data-driven, hyper-connected world, the truth is that tech companies and law enforcement work closely together on a daily basis to address an array of crimes. They do so within the American legal system that is predicated on the need for a warrant to access information and the right of individuals to their privacy. Despite claims from some in the intelligence community that systems and criminals are “going dark,” we actually live in an age where targeted, informed surveillance for law enforcement purposes is more possible – and more pervasive – than ever.
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