Facebook’s plan to encrypt platforms ‘puts children at risk’

Australian child protection groups have joined counterparts from across the world to oppose Facebook’s encryption plans.

Photo by Lionel BONAVENTURE / AFP)

Australian child protection groups have joined counterparts from across the world to sign an open letter to Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg, urging him not to proceed with the introduction of end-to-end encryption across all its platforms, including the popular Messenger application.

The groups, including Bravehearts, the Child Abuse Prevention Service and the Carly Ryan Foundation, are among 128 signatories to the letter, which warns that the encryption decision would lead to “more serious and sustained sexual abuse”.

The letter says the change would embolden abusers to “initiate and escalate abuse on Facebook’s services”, presenting an unacceptable risk to children.

“We urge you to recognise and accept that an increased risk of child abuse being facilitated on or by Facebook is not a reasonable trade-off to make,” it says.

“Children should not be put in harm’s way as a result of commercial decisions or design choices.”

The groups urge Facebook not to proceed with the encryption plan until it introduces measures to scan for child abuse images and agree to share data with government and child safety experts.

The pressure campaign follows demands by the US, UK and Australian governments for Facebook to introduce a back door into its encrypted messaging apps to allow police investigation of alleged child abuse and other serious crimes.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said Facebook was placing the “privacy of criminals” ahead of the safety of children.

“I will never understand the argument that criminals should be entitled to greater protections online than they have in the real world because somehow this will benefit the greater good,” he said.

Carly Ryan Foundation CEO Sonya Ryan said the potential ­impact of the Facebook changes were frightening.

“Currently, abuse notifications from Messenger are resulting in thousands of ­arrests per year, and thousands of children are being protected from horrific abuse,” she said.

“Facebook’s plan to encrypt Messenger would ensure that child grooming and exploitation would become undetectable.

“How has profit and privacy taken precedence over the safety of innocent children?”

Ms Ryan’s daughter Carly, 15, was killed after being groomed by an online predator. She thought she was talking to an 18-year-old musician, but was being stalked by 50-year-old paedophile Garry Francis Newman, who was found guilty of murdering her.