CEO of Apple Tim Cook has warned that the Government’s proposed Draft Investigatory Powers Bill, which was introduced to Parliament late last week, could have “very dire consequences” for citizens in the United Kingdom.
A key part of the legislation would require companies to alter or remove encryption on information or communications. Tim Cook warned that companies need to encrypt information to protect customers and that the new law would only hurt people. Speaking to the Daily Telegraph, Cook said “You can just look around and see all the data breaches that are going on. These things are becoming more frequent. They can not only result in privacy breaches but also security issues.” This comes as no surprise to anyone following the TalkTalk data breach, or any of the other privacy breaches that have occurred in the last few months. Cook said: “Any back door is a back door for everyone. Everybody wants to crack down on terrorists. Everybody wants to be secure. The question is how. Opening a back door can have very dire consequences.”
The legislation would also require communication service providers to store information about any communication made for 12 months. This information would not include the content of the communications, but would include details such as who called who, when the message was made or sent, and where the communication was made. The same would also apply to internet service providers, who would be required to keep information on what services (including instant messaging services) a device had connected to. The bill promises this would not be a full browsing history however, just list web domains and services, but for many this is seen as too much information. It would also allow the police, armed forces or security/intelligence agencies to hack computers, mobiles and networks to recover information.
This statement follows criticism from numerous sources, including Human Rights Watch and the UN privacy chief. Izza Leghtas, a researcher for Human Rights Watch said: “Instead of heeding widespread calls to bring investigatory powers in line with human rights standards, the government is seeking to legitimize mass surveillance. The bill as it stands is not only a threat to the privacy of millions of people in the UK and abroad, but also sets a dangerous example for other governments.”