EU Commission Keeps Identity of "Going Dark" Group Secret

By Netvora Tech News

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The European Commission is keeping the identities of the individuals behind the High-Level Group (HLG) "Going Dark" secret, despite requests for information. The group, established by the Commission, consists of representatives from national law enforcement agencies, tasked with discussing "access to data for effective law enforcement." The term "Going Dark" refers to the inability of law enforcement agencies to access data due to encryption. Security experts argue that this is misplaced. The advisory group published a report last year with 42 recommendations, including the introduction of encryption backdoors and a new European data retention law. In response to the report, a coalition of over 50 civil rights organizations, privacy groups, and tech companies sent an open letter to European Justice and Home Affairs Ministers urging respect for encryption and privacy. However, the Commission's decision not to disclose the identities of the group members has sparked fierce criticism on Reddit and Hacker News. "This is beyond satire. A blacklisted list of people who are opposed to the privacy of others," wrote one of the over 1,000 commenters on Reddit. The Commission has provided documents to FragDenStaat, a transparency initiative, but the names of the group members remain redacted. Only the country of origin is visible. Four individuals from the Netherlands are listed as having participated in the first meeting. The secrecy surrounding the group has raised concerns about the potential impact on privacy and encryption. The European Commission's refusal to disclose the identities of the group members has sparked a heated debate about the balance between law enforcement and privacy rights.