Convictions of suspects who refuse to hand over their encrypted passwords have risen sixfold in four years, potentially blocking police from examining their electronic devices. The sharp increase has led to fears that criminals are opting to plead guilty to encryption offences rather than allow detectives to go through their computers and phones, which could lead to more serious charges and longer sentences. http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/crime/article4603026.ece Gareth Corfield, editor for The Register, added "On that RIPA stats story, it's been fed to The Times as part of the Snooper's Charter PR push from stats not previously made public."