Comment on Encryption Is Not a Crime
revv@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 day agoWith respect, this is a short-sighted take. There’s literally no legitimate crime that is made worse because a person tried to avoid it being detected. Plot a murder over tor? Not a good look. But in what universe is someone less morally culpable because they just posted on craigslist?
On the other hand, allowing the use of encryption or other privacy methods to affect the criminality or punishment assigned to an action just creates a backdoor to criminalizing privacy itself. Allowing that serves no real purpose in deterring folks from hurting others, but it sure does further the interests of an oppressive or authoritarian regime.
annette_runner@lemmy.world 1 day ago
How does covering up a crime not make it worse when it allows you to get away and commit more crime?
jmf@lemm.ee 1 day ago
Doing crime in the privacy of my own home allows me to get away with it and commit more crime, doesn’t mean we should have transparent walls that everyone can watch what you do through.
annette_runner@lemmy.world 1 day ago
I don’t disagree with that but the article is talking about what arguments are permissible in a court room which is a little different. Same as using tools to commit a crime. It’s not illegal to own or use tools but when used in commission of a crime, this can be a factor in proving elements of a crime that require proof of intention or malice.
jmf@lemm.ee 10 hours ago
Not sure I understand how you are reading the article. That’s like saying having a steak knife in your home is a factor in proving elements of a crime. Tools are completely neutral parties that are unrelated to prosecution, and encryption should be no different.