Facebook is currently the lead referrer of child exploitation tips, according to the FBI director, but that could change under its new plans to make messages inaccessible to anyone not directly involved in the conversation.
Under the process known as encryption, Facebook would have access to metadata like time stamps messages were sent, but not content, which FBI Director Christopher Wray said would not be very useful to law enforcement. At a "Lawful Access Summit" hosted by the Department of Justice on Friday, Wray warned that Facebook's plans towould pose a grave threat to the ability of law enforcement to catch child predators. At the moment, Facebook is the top referrer of tips to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, according to Wray, providing 90% of its 18 million tips each year.
found that law enforcement has a harder time tracking down child pornography shared through encrypted technology.called on Facebook to halt its encryption plansFacebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wray's remarks. In response to Barr's letter, a Facebook spokesperson told CNBC on Thursday that the company has been consulting with experts in child safety as well as governments and other tech companies to ensure its newly encrypted services are secure.
FBI: 'We must be able to spy on everyone in order to catch criminals that make up 0.00001% of the population!'
Scaremongering