ENCYCLOPEDIA OF Espionage, Intelligence, and Security Volume ...

Clipper ChipAs Clinton settled into the presidency, he experiencedincreasing conflict with Congress and a public angered byhis policies. A 1993 PRD to permit U.S. forces to operateunder the control of a United Nations commander particularlyenraged many conservatives and had to be abandoned.The administration responded to its critics bymaking overseas actions more modest in scope. In Clinton’ssecond term, the administration sought to integrateEastern and Western Europe without provoking tensionswith Russia; to promote more open trade; to improvedefenses against such transnational threats as terrorismand narcotics; and to encourage a strong and stable Asian-Pacific community by seeking trade cooperation with Chinawhile avoiding confrontation with it on human rights issues.Critics of administration argue that it appeared to lacka clear consensus on what constituted vital national interests.The obvious reluctance of the president to risk significantnumbers of troops to achieve declared politicalobjectives prompted U.S. allies to express concern aboutreduced American global military involvement and mayhave encouraged continued troubles with “rogue” nationssuch as Iraq.❚ FURTHER READING:BOOKS:Drew, Elizabeth. On the Edge: The Clinton Presidency.New York: Simon & Schuster, 1994.Herrnson, Paul S., and Dilys M. Hill, eds. The ClintonPresidency: The First Term, 1992–96 New York: St.Martin’s Press, 1999.ELECTRONIC:Digital National Security Archive. “Presidential Directiveson National Security from Truman to Clinton.” 2003.(April25, 2003).White House. “History of the National Security Council,1947–1997.” (April 25, 2003).SEE ALSOCold War (1972–1989): The Collapse of the Soviet UnionExecutive Orders and Presidential DirectivesIraq War: Prelude to War (The International Debate Overthe Use and Effectiveness of Weapons Inspections)Iraqi Freedom, Operation (2003 War Against Iraq)National Security Advisor, United StatesNational Security Strategy, United StatesNATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)NSC (National Security Council)NSC (National Security Council), HistoryClipper ChipIn 1993, officials in the administration of President WilliamJefferson Clinton announced the proposed use of a cryptographicdevice intended to protect private communicationsfor all but authorized monitoring by governmentagencies. Termed the “clipper chip,” the device wouldpermit secure encrypted voice communications, but wouldalso allow United States law enforcement and intelligenceagencies to monitor those communications by obtainingthe algorithm keys to decrypt the transmissions.As initially proposed the government would allow thekeys to be maintained in a database held by an independentagent. Access to those keys would be permitted onlyas “legally authorized.” Critics and privacy advocatesimmediately questioned the vague and broad use of theterm legally authorized.“A chip similar in design and performance specifications,the Capstone chip, could be similarly regulated toallow secure data transmissions that could also be easilydecrypted by United States law and intelligence agenciesvia known algorithmic keys.An algorithm defines a repeatable step-by-step seriesof mathematical or language manipulation procedures toencrypt or decrypt a message or communication. Cryptologysystems utilize algorithms and the labels, mechanics,recursive procedures, or other solutions are termed ”keys“to the algorithm.Use of the clipper chip was adopted and authorized in1994. The National Institute of Standards and Technology(NIST) and the Department of the Treasury were designatedto be the database repositories or ”escrow“ agentsfor the algorithmic keys. Rules regarding access to thekeys were developed in accord with state and nationalsecurity wiretap orders.The clipper chip utilizes the SKIPJACK algorithm aspart of the Escrowed Encryption Standard (EES) program.SKIPJACK was developed as a classified algorithm by theNational Security Agency (NSA). SKIPJACk was initiallydeveloped as part of the Fortezza encryption suite and is asymmetric cipher with a fixed key length of 80 bits. Securityexperts assert that multiple encryption programs mayeventually replace SKIPJACK like encryption-decryptionprograms.❚ FURTHER READING:PERIODICALS:Baker, Stewart A. ”Don’t Worry, Be Happy: Why Clipper IsGood for You.“ Wired. June 1994.Johnson, George. ”The Spies’ Code and How It Broke,“New York Times, Week in Review. July 16, 1995.SEE ALSOCipher Key218 Encyclopedia of Espionage, Intelligence, and Security