White House Annoucement of the Clipper Initiative This is the original public announcement by the White House of the Clipper initiative. THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary For Immediate Release April 16, 1993 STATEMENT BY THE PRESS SECRETARY The President today announced a new initiative that will bring theFederal Government together with industry in a voluntary program toimprove the security and privacy of telephone communications whilemeeting the legitimate needs of law enforcement. The initiative will involve the creation of new products to acceleratethe development and use of advanced and secure telecommunicationsnetworks and wireless communications links. For too long there has been little or no dialogue between our privatesector and the law enforcement community to resolve the tensionbetween economic vitality and the real challenges of protectingAmericans. Rather than use technology to accommodate the sometimescompeting interests of economic growth, privacy and law enforcement,previous policies have pitted government against industry and therights of privacy against law enforcement. Sophisticated encryption technology has been used for years to protectelectronic funds transfer. It is now being used to protect electronicmail and computer files. While encryption technology can helpAmericans protect business secrets and the unauthorized release ofpersonal information, it also can be used by terrorists, drug dealers,and other criminals. A state-of-the-art microcircuit called the "Clipper Chip" hasbeen developed by government engineers. The chip represents a newapproach to encryption technology. It can be used in new, relativelyinexpensive encryption devices that can be attached to an ordinarytelephone. It scrambles telephone communications using an encryptionalgorithm that is more powerful than many in commercial use today. This new technology will help companies protect proprietaryinformation, protect the privacy of personal phone conversations andprevent unauthorized release of data transmitted electronically. At the same time this technology preserves the ability of federal, stateand local law enforcement agencies to intercept lawfully the phoneconversations of criminals. A "key-escrow" system will be established to ensure that the "ClipperChip" is used to protect the privacy of law-abiding Americans. Eachdevice containing the chip will have two unique "keys," numbers thatwill be needed by authorized government agencies to decode messagesencoded by the device. When the device is manufactured, the two keyswill be deposited separately in two "key-escrow" data bases that willbe established by the Attorney General. Access to these keys will belimited to government officials with legal authorization to conduct awiretap. The "Clipper Chip" technology provides law enforcement with no newauthorities to access the content of the private conversations ofAmericans. To demonstrate the effectiveness of this new technology, the AttorneyGeneral will soon purchase several thousand of the new devices. Inaddition, respected experts from outside the government will beoffered access to the confidential details of the algorithm to assessits capabilities and publicly report their findings. The chip is animportant step in addressing the problem of encryption's dual-edgesword: encryption helps to protect the privacy of individuals andindustry, but it also can shield criminals and terrorists. We need the"Clipper Chip" and other approaches that can both provide law-abidingcitizens with access to the encryption they need and prevent criminalsfrom using it to hide their illegal activities. In order to assesstechnology trends and explore new approaches (like the key-escrowsystem), the President has directed government agencies to develop acomprehensive policy on encryption that accommodates: the privacy of our citizens, including the need to employ voice ordata encryption for business purposes; the ability of authorized officials to access telephone calls anddata, under proper court or other legal order, when necessary toprotect our citizens; the effective and timely use of the most modern technology to buildthe National Information Infrastructure needed to promote economicgrowth and the competitiveness of American industry in the globalmarketplace; and the need of U.S. companies to manufacture and export high technologyproducts. The President has directed early and frequent consultations withaffected industries, the Congress and groups that advocate the privacyrights of individuals as policy options are developed. The Administration is committed to working with the private sector tospur the development of a National Information Infrastructure whichwill use new telecommunications and computer technologies to giveAmericans unprecedented access to information. This infrastructure ofhigh-speed networks ("information superhighways") will transmit video,images, HDTV programming, and huge data files as easily as today'stelephone system transmits voice. Since encryption technology will play an increasingly important rolein that infrastructure, the Federal Government must act quickly todevelop consistent, comprehensive policies regarding its use. TheAdministration is committed to policies that protect all Americans' right to privacy while also protecting them from those who break the law. Further information is provided in an accompanying fact sheet. The provisions of the President's directive to acquire the new encryption technology are also available. For additional details, call Mat Heyman, National Institute of Standards and Technology, (301) 975-2758. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT THE CLINTON ADMINISTRATION'S TELECOMMUNICATIONS INITIATIVE Q: Does this approach expand the authority of government agencies to listen in on phone conversations? A: No. "Clipper Chip" technology provides law enforcement with no new authorities to access the content of the private conversations of Americans. Q: Suppose a law enforcement agency is conducting a wiretap on a drug smuggling ring and intercepts a conversation encrypted using the device. What would they have to do to decipher the message? A: They would have to obtain legal authorization, normally a court order, to do the wiretap in the first place. They would then present documentation of this authorization to the two entities responsible for safeguarding the keys and obtain the keys for the device being used by the drug smugglers. The key is