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CURRENT RISKS |
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Some critics of our export policy believe that US national security is at risk when we export technology such as encryption software or supercomputers. These risks can usually be placed into two categories, domestic security and geopolitical security. Domestic security is concerned with the protection of citizens and property within the US from threats such as terrorism or organized crime. Geopolitical security is concerned with the preservation of the state and its interests such as: nuclear proliferation, protection of raw materials (such as oil), and security of ally nations (e.g. Japan and Western Europe). Domestic SecurityThe opponents of exportation of encryption technology usually cite domestic security concerns as their primary argument. Governmental agencies, mainly those responsible for law enforcement such as the FBI or the Justice Department, believe that new high tech criminals and terrorists will be able to use encryption technologies to cover their track and hamper law enforcement from monitoring their activities. They argue that it should be possible for the government to decrypt suspect communications after obtaining the equivalent of a wiretap warrant. Therefore, they favor the exportation of encryption techniques that have key recovery or key escrow techniques in place. Geopolitical SecurityMost of the concerns over the exportation of supercomputers fall into the realm of geopolitical security. Most of these worries are centered on China and Russia and the use of supercomputers to help develop and refine their nuclear weapons arsenals. With the rise of test ban treaties, such as the accord signed in September 1996 by United States and Russia, supercomputers have become one of the only ways to develop new weapons designs and assure the reliability of old ones. The computation power required to carry out the simulations is enormous and as of now, out of the reach of most non-Western non-US allied countries. This issue has become even more apparent after the unfolding of two crises arose over the sale of supercomputers to Chinese and Russian nuclear weapons laboratories. FBI Report on Threats to US National Security from FBI Directory Louis J. Freeh |
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