Silicon Valley readies for long battle with government over encryption

The argument surrounding the use of encryption has placed tech companies and Internet users against national governments desperately trying to find ways to access data. President Barack Obama reportedly wants an open discussion with Silicon Valley leaders, but it looks like both sides aren't even close to coming to terms about encryption.

"We support the privacy rights of individuals," according to law enforcement officials in the United States, UK, Spain, and France. "But in the absence of cooperation from Apple and Google, regulators and lawmakers in our nations must now find an appropriate balance between the marginal benefits of full-disk encryption and the need for local law enforcement to solve and prosecute crimes. The safety of our communities depends on it."

However Google, Yahoo, and other tech companies are ready to fight for the rights of Internet users - and that means preventing government intrusion - and built-in backdoors for government and law enforcement access.

"Plain and simple, this attack on encryption is government overreach," according to a statement posted by Google. "Let's remind our governments that the stuff we keep online is as valuable to us as what we keep offline - and it deserves the same level of protection."

Previously, Europol said encryption and similar technologies makes it harder to fight terrorism - but many Internet users just aren't buying it. Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden also wants to see companies fight against any form of encryption backdoors, which could leave information vulnerable to outside snooping.