That wouldn't even be the bottom of the rabbit hole, because even if you could give law enforcement access to encrypted messages without undermining encryption in general (which I still maintain you can't) then you would also have to stop people from switching to a different messaging app (otherwise you just end up in a never ending game of whac-a-mole). The only way the UK government could achieve that would be to disable all internet access and put firing squads along the border. Sounds familiar? North Korea already does those two things.
It's not about privacy it's about security. You're not a terrorist though, at least i don't think you are. @Anfield, Indeed, apparently ISIS already has it's own encrypted chat app, heck even i could make a simple VB app that encrypted my messages and that's saying something.
If you poke holes into encryption then what is there to prevent terrorists from getting intel on their target and stealing from your bank account? Also, do you think terrorists will use unsave encryption? If you want a good example of the effects of poking holes in security then look at the TSA locks and how that allows you to be robbed by anyone with the master key, which no one can get access... and someone leaked them online.
Another close one today by the looks of it. Thankfully the security and intelligence services had their eyes on this one, for some time it seems, and he was nabbed as he crossed the road in Whitehall with what looks like a bag full of knives. Good job.
It annoys the crap out of me that it's being reported as Terrorism, with a capital T, rather than just a loony with a bag of kitchen utensils.
News of tomorrow: "Random dude drops plate in kitchen, arrested for terror attack against his kitchen floor".
In related news it seems the SS have managed, somehow, to read Khalid Masood's last WhatsApp message. Judging be the limited information the SS are willing to divulge, for obvious reasons, it seems they gained access to the phone itself.
Translation: They found a way to bypass the unlock code, probably using some sort of unpatched exploit. To me suggests either an older iPhone or one of a number of Android phones which wasn't running a patched OS (or was using an OS butchered by the manufacturer/carrier). Sounds like poor OpSec on Masood's part. Not that he gives a crap; he wasn't part of a cell so probably didn't have to hide the identity of his accomplices (since there weren't any), and you probably don't give a crap what's on your phone when the thing you're about to do can very likely make you dead.
Ooh, fun fact: when sliced bread launched, it was actually billed as "the greatest forward step in the baking industry since bread was wrapped." The More You Know™!
It's a tricky one because many folk who "declare" the motivation behind their act as political or whatever are as mad as cheese. Take Adrian ("Masood") for example. It's already illegal to poke people with them, or even carry most types around in public. Ridiculous, huh? "Health and safety gone mad".
It's not tricky at all, Terrorism is meant to achieve a political goal. Knife attacks don't achieve anything other than an egotistical declaration of "Look at how invested I am". Validating it as terrorism probably only encourages more lunatics to stab random people. Semtex achieves political goals, knives do not.
They probably hired the same dodgy company in Israel who helped the FBI to unlock a phone after Apple had refused to give them a backdoor to all their products.
It's not quite that simple. I know what you're saying but the type of weapon used is irrelevant. I'm sure many terrorists are egotistical though (like many are loons), whatever methods they choose to dish it out.
It isn't merely intent; It's the political goal that's key. No one is going to change their behaviour or political leanings over weapons no deadlier than those used in bar fights.
Efficacy. It's just not that much of a threat to inspire societal or political change. There's no forward-planning, no strategy. It's a weapon of impulse.
