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                Date: 1999-06-22
                 
                 
                Krypto/export: Fall Bernstein wieder aufgerollt, DOJ gibt nicht auf
                
                 
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      Das Department of Justice gibt im Fall Bernstein nicht auf  und ficht  
das unlängst gefällt Urteil des 9th Circuit an. 
 
Drei Richter hatten entschieden, daß die von der Clinton- 
Administration forcierten Exportbeschränkungen für Kryptographie  
gegen das Recht auf freie Meinungsäußerung verstoßen und  
erkannten das Recht des Programmierers Daniel Bernstein an,  den  
von ihm geschriebenen Source/code eines Krypto/programms zu  
exportieren.   
 
Backgrounds 
http://futurezone.orf.at/futurezone.orf?read=detail&id=907
                   
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relayed by Alex Fowler <afowler@eff.org>  
 
DOJ Seeks Rehearing of Landmark Ruling in Bernstein Encryption  
Case 
 
CONTACTS: Cindy Cohn, McGlashan and Sarrail (650) 341-2585;  
cindy@mcglashan.com Alex Fowler, Electronic Frontier Foundation  
(415) 436-9333, x103; afowler@eff.org 
 
As expected, the U.S. Government today sought further review by  
the 9th Circuit of a 3 judge panel's recent decision holding that the  
federal government's regulations of encryption is unconstitutional.   
The Petition, which seeks both rehearing from the panel and  
rehearing en banc by an 11 judge panel, asserts two basic  
arguments, neither of which is new to the case. 
 
The government argues that the 9th Circuit panel incorrectly  
determined that the export restrictions on source code are facially  
unconstitutional. This argument is based upon an entirely  
unsupported assertion that source code is only used expressively  
"on occasion." 
 
"This should come as a big surprise to the millions of people who  
study, write, read, and develop their ideas using programming  
languages," noted lead counsel, Cindy Cohn.  "This includes most of  
the inhabitants of Silicon Valley, as well as the mathematics,  
physics, computer science and other departments of high schools,  
universities, and businesses worldwide where such expressions are  
written, read, and reviewed daily.  It is also is directly contradicted by  
evidence included in the record of this case." 
 
The government also argues that the court should have rewritten the  
regulations to make them Constitutional rather than strike them  
down.  By this, the government is asking the Court to step into the  
shoes of the agency and rewrite the regulations. 
 
"Obviously this is not a proper role for a court," stated Ms. Cohn.  
"Indeed had the Court done so the government would have protested  
the 'judicial activism' of the Court.  Writing regulations that meet the  
constitutional standards for free speech is certainly within the  
abilities of the Commerce Department." 
 
"In sum, the Petition for Rehearing is not surprising, nor does it raise  
any new arguments," Cohn concluded.  "It instead indicates the  
intention of the Government to delay justice for Professor Bernstein,  
as well as the many others who are restricted by the encryption  
regulations, for as long as possible." 
 
Background 
 
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on May 6, 1999 that the  
federal government's restrictions on encryption are unconstitutional,  
affirming a lower court's ruling that export control over cryptographic  
"software and related devices and technology are in violation of the  
First Amendment on the grounds of prior restraint." 
 
The case has been sponsored by EFF since 1995 because of its  
importance to society, free expression, electronic commerce, and  
privacy in the digital 
 
 
world. 
 
Encryption, the process of coding and decoding computerized  
information, is the most critical technological solution to protecting  
privacy and keeping computer networks secure.  Acknowledging this  
point, the appeals court said "[t]he availability and use of secure  
encryption may offer an opportunity to reclaim some portion of the  
privacy we have lost.  Government efforts to control encryption thus  
may well implicate not only the First Amendment rights of  
cryptographers intent on pushing the boundaries of their science, but  
also the constitutional rights of each of us as potential recipients of  
encryption's bounty." 
 
The EFF Bernstein legal team consists of: Cindy A. Cohn,  
McGlashan & Sarrail; Lee Tien; James Wheaton & Elizabeth  
Pritzker, First Amendment Project; Robert Corn-Revere, Hogan &  
Hartson; M. Edward Ross, Steefel, Levitt & Weiss; and Dean  
Morehous & Sheri A. Byrne, Thelen, Reid and Priest. 
 
Details on the Bernstein case, including information on the lower  
court's rulings, are available on the Internet at  
http://www.eff.org/bernstein. 
 
* * * * * * * * 
 
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (http://www.eff.org) is the leading  
global organization linking technical architectures and legal  
frameworks to support the rights of individuals in an open society.   
Founded in 1990, EF 
F actively encourages and challenges industry and government to support free expression, privacy, and access in the information society.  The Electronic Frontier Foundation maintains the 4th most-linked-to Web site in the 
 world. 
 
 
===----------------------------------------------=== Alexander Fowler Director,  
Strategic Initiatives Group Electronic Frontier Foundation 
 
E-mail: afowler@eff.org Tel: 415 436 9333, x103; Fax 415 436 9993 
 
You can find EFF on the Web at <http://www.eff.org>  
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edited by  
published on: 1999-06-22 
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