Whenever a new feature is being considered for implementation and marketing, one very important issue will be how much it will cost to implement it in such a manner as to pass the hurdles of the proposal. That could price many good ideas that would improve the usefulness of our NII off the feasibility horizon. Not only would our citizens not have access to these new and useful services but they would not be implemented in US manufactured systems and thus could make our systems less sellable in competition with those of foreign manufacturers of communications equipment for off shore sales. Note that off shore sales in the developing parts of the globe represent major markets which we could lose. Technical knowledge of how to create powerful and practically unbreakable encryption technology is available throughout the world.
Powerful encryption poses real challenges for law enforcement and national security efforts.
These challenges will not be solved by just a single chip such as Clipper or even just a single legislative act such as the proposed Digital Telephony bill. The federal government should lead the way toward an open solution, rather than trying in vain to force a closed solution on the problem. Real alternative to publicly revealed Clipper system design exist, which meet law enforcement goals while protecting privacy, civil liberties and preserving technological flexibility. V. Conclusion There should be no doubt that new computer and communciations technologies pose challenges for the law enforcement and national security communities. The Congress and the Administration should lead the way toward solutions that are open, provide for flexibility in the future, and seek an appropriate balance of individual privacy and the legitimate needs of law enforcement.