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0 pointsbadRNG5y ago0 comments

>Are you saying that CPC gets to ban Google, Facebook, Twitter & a ton of other non-Chinese online companies but the US government does not get to ban Chinese online companies, even in the name of fairness both in terms of trade and information flow?

Yes I am.

My concerns center the precedent of banning software. If banning software to further the interests of national security is established as a precedent, it is reasonable to assume this will be weaponized against end-to-end encrypted messaging apps like Signal. This would erode a strong, hard fought for precedent that code is speech. The Bernstein v. Department of Justice decision ended Export Control of encryption on the basis of software as speech. [1] Courts affirmed this right again in a ruling against a California law banning the sale of violent video games to minors, as it infringed on the speech of video game companies. [2]

Since you brought up China's policies, they also happen to ban end-to-end encrypted apps as there is a strong precedent for doing so in the interests of national security. [3] These simply aren't policies worth emulating.

[1] https://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/04/21-40

[2] https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/08-1448.ZS.html

[3] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/25/business/china-whatsapp-b...

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count5y ago

They're not banning the software. They're banning doing business with ByteDance. If no money or contract is executed, you aren't covered. It's ByteDance that chooses to enforce a ToS and have a contract - they could put the code and app up for download with no money changing hands, and it'd be fine. This is importantly different. Not saying it's right or wrong, just specifically different.

nathanlied5y ago

Indeed. I don't see why people are mischaracterising this ban; it isn't banning software, it's an extension of the concept of a 'commercial embargo' - except now it applies to a company instead of a country.

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