Peter Haefner on Fri, 4 Jun 1999 01:49:30 +0200 (CEST) |
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Re: <nettime> Germany Frees Crypto - the translation |
On 2 Jun 99, at 14:58, John Young wrote: > The German cabinet today released a policy statement on > the unrestricted use of encryption (an English translation > would be welcome): > > http://www.bmwi.de/presse/1999/0602prm1.html Here you are. All the faults are mine however German bureaucrats do have their own type of rather dull language as you are going to find out. And please bear in mind that I'm no native English speaker ;-) --------------------------- Federal Ministry of the Interior Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Technology Bonn, June 2 1999 Cornerstones of German Encryption Policy The Federal Cabinet agreed on the German position on the use of cryptographical methods in e-commerce in the form of “Cornerstones of German Encryption Policy”. The government followed the necessity to take position in this nationally and internationally vital question important for business and e- commerce. Security problems are on the rise with growing traffic on the net. Experts are estimating the losses caused by espionage, manipulation, or damaging of data by billions. Data security is becoming a serious issue with global competition and because of that is affecting jobs in respective businesses. Improved protection of German users on the net by means of better encryption methods is the main concern of this decision. It states clearly that cryptographic methods and products are furthermore permitted to be developed, produced, and used without any restrictions. The yet low awareness towards this issue shall be raised by this decision. The initiative “Security On The Net” by ministries of economic affairs and interior is meant to serve the same purpose <http://www.sicherheit-im-internet.de> Another main aim of the German federal government is to strengthen productivity and international competitiveness of the German suppliers in encryption business which are likely to intensify their efforts with regards to a growing demand. The further opening of the European single market is serving the same purpose: Germany together with its European partners abolished supervision of encryption mass products exported within the EU by revising the EU-dual-use-decree. Simplification of export supervision procedure are under examination by the Bundesausfuhramt (federal export agency?) With the use of cryptography on the raise improper use can’t be ruled out. Therefore the involved ministries will be watching further development thoroughly and deliver a report after 2 years. Efforts to improve the technical equipment of law enforcement agencies are underway. With this well-balanced position the federal government met the requirements for Germany being a secure and productive site in the information age. Cornerstones of German Crypto Policy Preface Hard- and software for message encoding remained until the beginning of the 90-ies a negligible niche market. However this niche market is now of considerable importance to the economic and social development in the information age. The input ”information” is developing more and more into a much demanded raw material. Effectively protecting this asset could can be crucial to corporate success and thus determine on prospective employment. This protection today can be effectively ensured only by use of strong encryption tools. Controversy on encryption in Germany The controversy on encryption is about whether or not and to which extent cryptography should be restricted by law. This point has been discussed recently in many democratic industrial countries in a controversial way. An intensive argument took place in Germany too, with several ministries, industry, and numerous social groups participating. In October 1997 the federal cabinet passed the ”Federal report: Info 2000: Germanys way into the information age”, containing a passage on cryptography: ”The Federal Government agrees on waiving to regulate by law the trade and use of cryptographic products and methods. Thus the unrestricted freedom of users with choosing and use of encryption systems remains not affected. The Federal Government will watch further development in the field of cryptography thoroughly particularly within a European and international context. Further measures to reach its goals will be taken if necessary. ” So far the Federal Government has not taken stand definitely and unequivocally. Cryptography and economic interests Due to the dynamic development of digital business dealings the markets for encryption products note high growth rates. Besides the traditional protection of confidence by now encryption systems are mainly used e.g. for digital copyright protection, digital signatures, and digital cash. Beyond this cryptography is a cross-section-technology indispensable for architecture and development of complex e-commerce applications. Indirectly much bigger markets are concerned like e.g. telecommunication, online-banking, or tele-medicine. It’s true that present-day security standards, few years ago affordable only to large-scale enterprises and administration, are now within means of medium-sized and small enterprises as well as private households. But still in Germany cryptography is not used in the required degree. The necessary security awareness is lacking frequently even though considerable losses can be caused by espionage, manipulation, or destruction of data. German crypto manufacturers would have a good chance of keeping up with international competition, if appropriate conditions are ensured. In view of the strategic meaning of the cryptographic sector many important industrial states spare no effort in order to strengthen their economical and technical capacities. Cryptography and security interests Cryptographic methods are of outstanding importance for efficient technical crime protection. That applies to ensuring of authenticity and integrity in data traffic as well as protection of confidence. On the other hand protection of confidence is in favor of perpetrators: With cryptographic applications becoming more user-friendly spreading into criminal circles has to be expected. This could cause serious problems for law enforcement. Lawful surveillance ordered by a court has to remain effective even if the target guards concerned information with a cryptographic system. Up to now abuse of encryption constitutes no serious problem for law enforcement. However there can’t be derived a forecast from this. It is necessary to actively examine possible consequences with regard to the specific needs of law enforcement and national security to early identify any undesirable development and take effective action against them based on alternative strategies. With the recent national discussion as well as the international development as foundations the Federal Government agrees on the following cornerstones of encryption policy: The Federal Government is not intended to restrict the general availability of cryptographic products in Germany. It recognizes the crucial importance of secure encryption for data protection, development of electronic business dealings, and protection of corporate secrets. Therefore the Federal Government will actively support spreading of secure encryption in Germany. This is meant to particularly promote awareness on security issues among business, administration, and private people. The Federal Government aims at strengthening users to trust in cryptographic security. It will take measures to establish a trust framework for secure cryptography, particularly by improving the ability to check cryptographic products on security and recommending of qualified products. The Federal Government considers the capability of German manufacturers to develop and manufacture secure and powerful cryptographic products as crucial to security of nation, business, and society. It will take actions to improve the international competitiveness in this field. The legal authority of law enforcement and security agencies to keep telecommunication under surveillance shall not be eroded by dissemination of strong methods for encryption. Therefore the competent ministries will be watching further development thoroughly and report after 2 years. Irrespective of that the Federal Government will support improving technical competence of law enforcement within the bounds of its possibilities. The Federal Government sets a great store by international cooperation in the field of encryption. It stands up for market developed open standards as well as interoperable system and will speak up for strengthening of multi- and bilateral cooperation. --------------------------- --- peter.haefner@iname.com pgp-key available --- # distributed via nettime-l : no commercial use without permission # <nettime> is a closed moderated mailinglist for net criticism, # collaborative text filtering and cultural politics of the nets # more info: majordomo@desk.nl and "info nettime-l" in the msg body # URL: http://www.desk.nl/~nettime/ contact: nettime-owner@desk.nl