How activists are forcing the White House to say where it stands on encryption

A petition calling for President Barack Obama to support strong encryption and "reject any law, policy or mandate" that would undermine digital security reached 100,000 signatures on Oct 27, the level at which the White House has said it will respond. The petition was organized by privacy activists at Access Now and the Electronic Frontier Foundation and endorsed by more than 50 groups and companies, including tech heavy hitters, such as Google and Microsoft. The action relied on the "We the People" platform, a public engagement tool from the White House that promises to respond to petitions that reach a certain number of signatures -- right now that's 100,000.