Facebook and Apple defended their decision to block law enforcement from accessing communications among their billions of users during a contentious hearing on Tuesday, even as they face intensifying pressure from lawmakers and the U.S. attorney general.
The hearing came against a backdrop of reignited tensions between Silicon Valley and the government over whether tech companies are enabling criminal activity as they work to build privacy into their products.
While the tech industry has fought bitterly with Washington for years over the issue, it’s gained new urgency as Facebook works to encrypt its megapopular messaging services — a process that will prevent law enforcement, the U.S. government and the companies themselves from accessing any communications sent between users even if officials obtain a warrant.