From the recent slew of encryption legislation (H.R. 3011, S.1587, & S.1726), it's clear that Congress understands that the best people in
============================================================================= ____ _ _ _ / ___|_ __ _ _ _ __ | |_ ___ | \ | | _____ _____ | | | '__| | | | '_ \| __/ _ \ _____| \| |/ _ \ \ /\ / / __| | |___| | | |_| | |_) | || (_) |_____| |\ | __/\ V V /\__ \ \____|_| \__, | .__/ \__\___/ |_| \_|\___| \_/\_/ |___/ |___/|_| SENATOR BURNS (R-MT) TELLS THE WHITE HOUSE "THREE STRIKES AND YOU'RE OUT" OF THE ENCRYPTION DEBATE BURNS SAYS CLIPPER III PLAN IS A "SWING AND A MISS" Date: May 20, 1996 URL:http://www.crypto.com/ crypto-news@panix.com If you redistribute this, please do so in its entirety, with the banner intact. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table of Contents News Text of press release from Senator Burns (R-MT) How to receive crypto-news ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- NEWS The hemorrhaging of the White House publicity campaign surrounding the Clipper III proposal that started in Interactive Week and the House of Representatives continues today in the Senate. Earlier today we received the attached press release from Senator Burns' (R-MT) office. Although this author has not yet seen the proposal, it is wonderful to see Congress leading the fight against the White House on this issue. the world to sort out this issue are the public and industry. The three Clipper plans have been hatched by a secretive Executive agency without considering the needs of the public and industry. This is the start of a highly-charged tug-of-war between Congress and the White House over who holds the keys to your privacy: you, or the government? Congress says you, the White House says the government. It's crucial that we support Congress as they go head-to-head with the White House. Keep an eye out for the first leaks and analyses of the Clipper III report that will undoubtedly appear on the net soon. DON'T FORGET! Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) will be on HotWired *THIS WEDNESDAY*, May 22nd at 4pm EST at http://www.hotwired.com/wiredside/ You can tune in and listen to the chat with the RealAudio software (http://www.realaudio.com). You can ask questions of the Senator through a moderator and get real, immediate responses. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- TEXT OF PRESS RELEASE FROM SENATOR BURNS (R-MT) [Note that feedback to Senator Burns can be sent via email at conrad_burns@burns.senate.gov -Shabbir] For immediate release: Contact: Matt Raymond Monday, May 20, 1996 (202) 224-8150 Randall Popelka (202) 224-6137 Burns: Clipper III Strikes Out New Clinton Computer "Wiretap" Plan Circulates With Few Changes WASHINGTON, D.C. _ Montana Senator Conrad Burns today criticized the Clinton administration's latest computer security proposal as yet another government-driven mandate and urged swift passage of Burns' "Pro-CODE" bill, which addresses export of encryption technology and prohibits mandatory decryption-key escrow. Burns reacted to the circulation of a draft administration proposal entitled "Achieving Privacy, Commerce, Security and Public Safety in the Global Information Infrastructure." The proposal, dated May 10 and dubbed "Clipper III" by critics, moves toward the loosening and possibly eventual elimination of export controls on encryption technologies, but only if companies and individuals surrender a copy of their code keys to a government-approved third party. "It's three strikes and you're out at the old ball game, and I would say that the third version of the administration's Clipper Chip proposal is a swing and a miss," Burns said. "It's time to quit relying on government mandates for what is truly a matter of great concern to the private sector: the expansion of commerce on the Internet and other computer networks. "The administration has been using export restrictions as a billy club to force American companies into accepting government control over the keys to their computer files and transmissions. At least this new proposal admits that the current 40-bit limit on exports is outdated and a poor guarantee of electronic security and integrity, but it again operates from the standpoint that the government, and not the private sector, knows best when it comes to key strength and control over those keys. "We can only stick our heads in the sand for so long. It is important to point out that the criminals and trouble-makers who are apparently targets of this plan are unlikely to enroll in any key-escrow system. Law-abiding businesses and individuals would suffer at the hands of this misguided proposal. "While this may appear to be a compromise of the administration's earlier positions, we have to remember that an executive action can be reversed just as quickly after an election year. It is crucial that we pass legislation to codify a solution to the administration's current outdated export policies, and to ensure that the government won't force anyone to give up the keys to their computers." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- HOW TO RECEIVE CRYPTO-NEWS To subscribe to crypto-news, sign up from our WWW page (http://www.crypto.com) or send mail to majordomo@panix.com with "subscribe crypto-news" in the body of the message. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- End crypto-news =============================================================================