Why encryption is a good thing

Recently, I've noticed an uptick in negative press against end-to-end encryption. The argument against is that it is impossible to provide both end-to-end encryption and allow for surveilance by governments or law enforcement. This makes it a great choice for communication for criminals, and this is why it is receiving some pushback from those in charge. Still, I believe in encryption and I think it is a good thing.

What is end-to-end encryption?

End-to-end encryption is a form of encryption that allows two parties to exchange messages using their public and private keys. How the encryption works is not particularly relevant, but in a nutshell, it means that only both ends of the communication can decrypt the messages they are exchanging; not even the messaging service itself can read them.

When you exchange WhatsApp messages with someone, WhatsApp cannot see the contents of the message because it has end-to-end encryption. This means that you can freely talk about wanting to buy a new car with your friends, without WhatsApp using this information to serve you ads for car insurance. It also means that, unfortunately, you can talk about robbing the bank, and WhatsApp has no way of knowing this and therefore cannot notify law enforcement.

Oppression

In free countries, encryption mostly exists to protect users against the company they are using to send messages to their friends and family. In some oppressive countries, it can also allow users to express their opinions freely, without having to worry about the police knocking on the door because you've said unfavorable words about the leader of the country. For these countries, encryption provides a basic human right; freedom of speech.

A double-edged knife

Encryption provides privacy for individuals. This is generally a good thing. On the other hand, it makes it easier for criminals to do whatever it is they do. Is this a good reason to ban encryption (or weaken it to the point it might as well not exist)? Is the messaging service is in any way responsible for this criminal activity? I don't believe so.

Kitchen knives are a pretty useful tool. They cut onions, carrots, steak, and a bunch more. Unfortunately, they are also awfully effective at cutting people. Does that mean kitchen knife manufacterers are responsible for crimes committed with their knives? Should they make the knives more blunt, so that it becomes difficult to stab someone with it? This sounds rather over-the-top to me personally; kitchen knives are meant for cutting foods. The manufacterer has no responsibility regarding situations where their product were used for goals that the product was never intended to be used for.

End-to-end encryption is quite the same. It is up to us, the users, to be ethical and mindful of what we use it for. But as with anything, those wanting to do bad will find a way to do it.

You have a choice, maybe

I don't mean to tell you what to do. If you do not like the implications of what end-to-end encryption provides, that's okay. You are entirely free (and I encourage you) to choose your messaging service according to what you find important. If you value a safe, moderated platform, there are plenty services available that'll give you this; Discord being a good example.

Unfortunately, sometimes we don't have a choice. We are at the mercy of the willingness of those we want to communicate with. If everyone's on Facebook Messenger, how are you to move over to your messenger of choice? Well, I'm sorry to say; I don't have an answer to that. Maybe one day I'll figure it out.