From "France Eases Cryptol Restrictions" in TBTF for 1999-01-26,
http://tbtf.com/archive/1999-01-26.html#s06

Translation by Babelfish [1] of part of a French government
announcement, posted at [2].

[1] http://babelfish.altavista.digital.com/cgi-bin/translate?
[2] http://www.premier-ministre.gouv.fr/PM/D190199.HTM

- - - - - -

The third legislative building site relates to cryptology.
Whereas develop the means of electronic espionage,
cryptology seems an average essence to protect the
confidentiality from the exchanges and protection of the
private life.

We had, one year ago, crossed a first step towards the
liberalization of the means of cryptology, i.e. the
technique which ensures the safety of the data exchanges on
the networks. I had announced whereas we would cross some
another later on. The Government, since, heard the actors,
questioned the experts and consulted its international
partners. We acquired the conviction today that the
legislation of 1996 is not adapted any more. Indeed, it
strongly restricts the use of cryptology in France, without
allowing besides for the public authorities fighting as much
effectively against criminal intrigues whose encryption
could facilitate the dissimulation.

To change the orientation of our legislation, the Government
thus followed the following orientations of which I
discussed with the President the Republic:

- to offer a freedom supplements in the use of cryptology;

- to remove the obligatory character of the recourse to the
third of confidence for the deposit of the keys of
encryption;

- to supplement the current legal device by the introduction
of obligations, together with penal sanctions, concerning
the handing-over with the legal authorities, when those
require it, of the transcription in light of the quantified
documents. In the same way, the technical capacities of the
public authorities will significantly be reinforced and
average the correspondent released.

To change the law will take several months. The Government
wanted that the principal obstacles which weigh on the
citizens to protect the confidentiality from their exchanges
and on the development of the electronic trade are raised
without waiting. Thus, in waiting of the announced
legislative modifications, the Government decided to raise
the threshold of the cryptology of which the use is free, of
40 bits with 128 bits, level considered by the experts
durably ensuring a very great safety.