Home Office response on Burden of Proof

[Ian G Batten]

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> (5) Do you now accept that a s.10 decryption notice can be served on pers=
ons
> not suspected or accused of any offence, and therefore it is not the case
> that only persons suspected of 'wrongdoing' would be liable for prosecuti=
on
> ?

Simple scenario.  Husband and Wife communicate by encrypted email while
one is away on business, because they are both using laptops connected
via untrusted ISPs.  During the trip, a s.10 decryption is served on one
of them in the course of an on-going investigation.  As a law-abiding
citizen with `nothing to hide', s/he immediately complies, handing over
their PGP private key in unencrypted form.  Their spouse, in casual
conversation, says, ``I don't really understand this PGP stuff: it means
no-one else can read our mail, right?  I want to tell you what I dreamt
about you last night''.

Does the recipient of the s.10 notice (a) lie to their spouse in order
to stay within the law --- obviously, for ministers, lying to their
spouse is a way of life given the amount of adultery, but for the rest
of us it's a bit more serious.  Or (b) tell the truth to their spouse,
making themselves a criminal for `tipping off'.

Nice choice, eh?  Especially since, as I understand it, spouses cannot
be compelled to give evidence against each other.

ian

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