They said the UK Home Office was misleading the public with a TV, radio and newspaper advertising campaign - created by M&C Saatchi - that accuses social media companies which use encryption of “blindfolding” the government.
Among the signatories are former MI5 intelligence officer Annie Machon; Peter Tatchell Foundation; Open Rights Group; Index on Censorship; Reporters Without Borders; Digital Rights Watch, and the LGBT Technology Partnership.
They believe the new campaign has been launched to try to sway public opinion against E2EE prior to amendments to the Online Safety Bill that would allow the government to force technology companies to weaken or remove the technology from their messaging apps.
Last year, home secretary Priti Patel argued that it was a “moral duty” for tech companies to stop using E2EE in order to prevent sexual abuse of children online and improve the UK’s ability to tackle terrorism.
Facebook has defended its stance on E2EE...