Apple, Google, Yahoo, among many others, along with noted cryptologists, have written a letter to U.S. President Barack Obama urging him to reject government proposals to include backdoors in encrypted communication systems.
According to The Washington Post, which obtained a copy of the letter, a total of 140 companies, including Apple and Google, joined security experts and former government officials have signed the four-page letter sent on Tuesday to the White House. The letter is also signed by three out of five members of a presidential review group appointed by Obama in 2013 to assess technology policies in the wake of leaks by former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden.
“Strong encryption is the cornerstone of the modern information economy’s security,” states the letter.
The signatories have urged the US government to “fully support and not undermine efforts to create encryption standards” and not “in any way subvert, undermine, weaken or make vulnerable” commercial software.
“We request that the White House instead focus on developing policies that will promote rather than undermine the wide adoption of strong encryption technology,” the letter reads.
“Such policies will in turn help to promote and protect cybersecurity, economic growth, and human rights, both here and broad.”
Whether the letter will evoke a positive response remains to be seen.
Apple, Google and White House are yet to comment on the report.
