A bill calling for strong encryption while prohibiting mandatory key escrow was introduced in the House Wednesday - promising that Congress will fight the Clinton administration tooth and nail on the issue of encryption export.
"Strong encryption has to happen for the Internet to reach its full potential," said Representative Bob Goodlatte (R-Virginia), who is sponsoring the Security and Freedom Through Encryption Act (SAFE).
SAFE would allow companies to export encryption products of any degree, and would prohibit the government from requiring those with encrypted data to "relinquish to another person control of that key."
But the Clinton administration remains insistent that key recovery be required for encryption export. Under new Commerce Department rules on encryption, a maximum of 56-bit encryption can be exported - and the department requires those products have a "key recovery option."
So far, the Commerce Department has approved three companies to export 56-bit encryption. Previously, only 40-bit encryption could be exported. Last month, a student at Berkeley cracked 40-bit encrypted code in less than four hours.
"We recognize the FBI's concerns, but their plan simply will not work," Goodlatte said.
Those who use encryption to commit a crime would face up to five years in prison for first offenses, and up to 10 years for repeat offenses under the SAFE bill.
The bill was introduced with 55 co-sponsors and has broad bipartisan support. Similar legislation - Pro-Code - will be reintroduced in the Senate in the coming weeks by Senator Conrad Burns (R-Montana). Both bills died in committee during the waning days of the last session of Congress.
