Signal boss warns app will exit Australia if forced to hand over users’ encrypted messages

a year ago by maniacalmanicmania to c/australia

Signal president Meredith Whittaker is prepared to withdraw the privacy-focused messaging app from Australia — saying she hopes it doesn’t become a “gangrenous foot” by poisoning its entire platform by forcing it to hand over its users’ encrypted data to authorities.

Ms Whittaker says Signal would take the “drastic step” of leaving any market where a government compelled it to create a “backdoor” to access its data, saying it would create a vulnerability that hackers and authoritative regimes could exploit, undermining Signals’ “reason for existing”.

Pressure has been mounting on Signal and other secure messaging platforms. ASIO director general Mike Burgess has urged tech companies to unlock encrypted messages to assist terrorism and national security investigations, saying offshore extremists use such platforms to communicate.

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melbaboutown 22 points a year ago

Has Australia just completely decided to go for broke

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quokka 10 points a year ago

Yep. And meanwhile the kids will be chatting/abusing in Google Docs. Or IRC servers they spin up for free in AWS or whatever. Or, shock, SMS.

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melbaboutown 3 points a year ago

Google docs getting censored as well for some reason

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No1 10 points a year ago

We're trying desperately to outdo the UK....

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null_dot 8 points a year ago

Not really.

This happens everywhere. It's the police job to ask for access and it's the signal CEO's job to decline.

Ultimately the ASIO (aus federal police) won't call signal's bluff because signal leaving isn't good for them. Threat actors would just use some alternative platform.

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pupbiru 9 points a year ago

australia is also a special kind of fucked up with this though… the assistance and access act that passed in 2018 is absolutely horrible

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Zagorath 3 points a year ago

ASIO (aus federal police)

I mean, sort of? The Australian Federal Police would be the Australian federal police (the hint is in the name!). But it's true that ASIO does take on many roles that in America are done by the FBI, while AFP does more typical things associated with policing.

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pulsewidth 5 points a year ago

Its just pressure from the ASIO chief (our NSA equivalent) at this stage. No legislation.

The Signal CEO is rightly firing back saying it'll never happen, and if push comes to shove they'll leave.

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