In the draft Act, the power to undo encryption is being extended. T his cryptic description seems to be directed at infiltrators who diddle out passwords, or look over the shoulder when messages are encrypted, or intelligence teams breaking into homes and offices in search of the little piece of paper the password is written on. The articles on the interception of telecommunication also contain remarks on cryptography. Encrypted messages may be kept in storage as long as is necessary for the BVD to decrypt them. So the use of a perfectly normal technique to protect ones privacy, trade secrets or sensitive political information, is in the eyes of the Dutch government a highly suspected act.
Refusal is punishable with a sentence of two years.
The Dutch parliament has asked the government if this means that suspects also are obliged to hand over the keys. The answer is not available yet. But if the governement confirms this obligation also applies to suspects, this will be a clear violation of the fundamental human rights, as stated for instance in the Treaty on the protection of the Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. It means an obligation to cooperate on your own condemniation and the reversal of the burden of proof. All Rights Reserved.