Florida bill requiring backdoor encryption for social media accounts fails to pass

A Florida bill failed to passDemand that social media companies provide encryption backdoors that would allow police access to user accounts and private information.Earlier this week, the Florida House of RepresentativesUse of social media by minorsThe bill was “delayed indefinitely” and “withdrawn from consideration.”

Members of the Florida Senate have previously voted to pass the bill, but it requires unanimous approval by both chambers to become law.

The bill requires social media companies to "provide a mechanism for decrypting end-to-end encryption when law enforcement obtains a subpoena," which is typically issued by law enforcement agencies and is not subject to judicial oversight.

Digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation called the bill "dangerous and stupid." Security experts have long argued that it is impossible to create a backdoor that is both secure and immune to malicious abuse, and that encryption backdoors put user data at risk of data breaches.