Rodney Frelinghuysen: “I am not actually opposed to the amendment, but I would like to talk about some of the assertions or allegations made by…”

“I am not actually opposed to the amendment, but I would like to talk about some of the assertions or allegations made by the gentleman, and I do that respectfully. I am not in opposition to the amendment, but I think there are some things that have been said that need to be replied to. The National Security Agency has participated in standards setting with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, known as NIST. Of course, they would participate. Wouldn't we want our Nation's best cryptographers to help strengthen and secure the Internet? Their participation in setting standards is a no-brainer. You want the standards to be designed by the people who best understand the threat. They recommended the standards that they themselves use. As the National Security Agency stated on September 30 of last year: NSA is responsible for setting the security standards for systems carrying and transporting the Nation's most sensitive and classified information. We use cryptography and standards that we recommend, and we recommend the cryptographic standards we use. We do not make recommendations that we cannot stand behind for protecting national security systems and data. The activity of NSA in setting standards has made the Internet a far safer place to communicate and to do business. Indeed, our participation in standards development has strengthened the core encryption technology that underpins the Internet.…”