Paoli-Based Company Joins Pushback Against 'Password For Entry' Plan
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Chester County-based privacy-protecting search engine DuckDuckGo is among more than two dozen companies and organizations behind a new push to stop a White House plan before it starts.
"Password for entry" is shorthand for the idea from the Department of Homeland Security that would require foreign travelers to hand over their social media logins before being granted access to the US.
"I understand the world is a scary place and people want to feel secure," said Nathan White of Access Now, a digital rights group.
White doesn't buy the government's argument that such enhanced vetting helps guard against terrorism. He says those intent on doing harm will simply shift to hidden accounts.
"It would be harmful for the economy of the U.S., would be harmful to digital security, and would certainly be harmful to human rights," said White.
Any such rules, he believes, would be imposed on us when we travel overseas. To those who say they've nothing to hide?
"It's a little bit like saying 'I don't care about free speech because I have nothing to say.' Giving someone access to your password is an access to your digital identity -- which is increasingly your identity," White said.
At flydontspy.com, there's a petition urging DHS to reject the plan. White says it's gotten more than 45,000 signatures in a matter of days.
