AT&T’s CEO claims corporations have no say in the encryption debate

Congress, not companies, should determine U.S. policy on access to encrypted data on cellphones and other devices, AT&T Inc. Chief Executive Randall Stephenson said in an interview. “I don’t think it is Silicon Valley’s decision to make about whether encryption is the right thing to do. I understand Tim Cook’s decision, but I don’t think it’s his decision to make,” Mr. Stephenson said Wednesday in an interview here with The Wall Street Journal at the World Economic Forum. Mr. Cook, Apple Inc.’s CEO, has pushed back against criticism of the encryption used in iPhones, saying consumers shouldn’t have to choose between privacy and security. An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment on Mr. Stephenson’s remarks. She reiterated the company’s position that ​it’s impossible to create a backdoor to encryption that only law enforcement, and not criminals, can access. Law-enforcement officials around the globe have argued that such encryption is an impediment to criminal investigations. They have amplified their calls for companies to provide better access following terror attacks from Paris to California to Indonesia. U.S. President Barack Obama said earlier this month that law-enforcement officers and intelligence agencies need to have the ability to unlock encrypted information, while still protecting consumer privacy.