Cryed failure and messaging, one agitated night for the assembly on drug trafficking – liberation

The deputies decided to maintain the confidentiality of encrypted messaging, Bruno Retailleau failing to convince them of the merits of a measure to combat drug traffickers, at the end of a rare technical breakdown on Thursday. The Minister of the Interior initially wanted to be able to Impose on encrypted messaging platforms (signal, WhatsApp, etc.) to communicate the correspondence of traffickers to intelligence services.

But the deputies had abolished this measure – which aggregates many actors and cybersecurity experts against her in law committee last week. In their eyes, there is too much risk of creating a flaw that puts the conversations of all users in danger. In the hemicycle, three deputies of the central block proposed a rewriting of the article, taking into account – according to them – the « Concerns » raised. But without succeeding in convincing, including several deputies from their camp.

After heated debates, where the Minister of the Interior was accused of wanting to return his measurement « By the window », and the deputies perpetrator of the amendments to be his « Flining door »the Assembly proceeded to vote by public election.

But a breakdown of the system prevented the accounting of votes. For an hour, the services tried to repair it, in vain. Some deputies have even wondered about the possibility of hacking. « We are not victims of a dysfunction linked to IT security »reassured the vice-president Naïma Moutchou when the session resumes. « It's a small part of the system that heated … under tension », she said, laughing.

The assembly carried out another form of public, more laborious public ballot: for half an hour, Naïma Moutchou called the name of each of the 577 deputies. Elected officials to respond for or against the microphone. Shortly before midnight, the president announced the result which no longer made much doubt: 119 votes against, 24 for.

A setback for the Minister of the Interior, who had however well started the evening, with the vote of a poorly consensual measure: the appeal, within the framework of an experiment, Algorithmic intelligence To detect organized crime threats. The rebellious deputies, environmentalists and communists succeeded themselves at the microphone to denounce a new step « Towards generalized monitoring ». « These are extremely wide nets that will be thrown on our private lives and on our freedom of opinion, expression, to come and go », Flistrated the deputy Elisa Martin.

At the same time, these elected officials denounced not having received any of the reports, provided for in the law, to assess the effectiveness of this algorithmic surveillance, already authorized for the prevention of terrorism and foreign interference. On the contrary, « These are line fishing »defended Bruno Retaille tasting an important control device. « It's supervised, it's targeted ».

Earlier in the day, another minister was on the bench to defend This senatorial law against drug trafficking. Gérald Darmanin experienced more peaceful exchanges, and the hemicycle even attended a rare agreement between the Keeper of Seals and LFI deputies Around the overhaul of the regime of « Repentis ». « If there is at least one device with which we agree, it is this », said the rebellious deputy Antoine Léaument, author of a recent report recommending a legalization of cannabis.

Unanimously, the deputies voted for a more attractive regime which takes model on the Italian antimafia law. We count in France 42 « Repentis » Against almost a thousand in Italy, according to figures given by the minister. Gold « If we don't make people who are in criminal organizations are not talked about, we will not have any information » To dismantle them.

With the new device, the « Repentis » could see their sentence reduced to two-thirds. It is also extended to people who have committed a blood crime. An implementing decree must more precisely draw its contours (new identity, family, penalties, etc.). The minister undertook to work in consultation with the parliamentarians on his writing. The debates on the text will continue on Friday at the Assembly.