> Should the police be able to access the Signal messages of someone they apprehended at a murder scene wherein other suspects fled the scene, and are therefore

> Should the police be able to access the Signal messages of someone they apprehended at a murder scene wherein other suspects fled the scene, and are therefore likely the suspects accomplices? I believe under those circumstances, the police should be able to apply to a judge for a warrant, and if probable cause is found and a warrant is issued, attempt to access the Signal messages of such a person. A requirement that they succeed has technological implications; Signal, the device, or both would have to contain a backdoor, or use security measures that are not very effective. I am an absolutist on this question; I don't think governments should have the authority to mandate backdoors in products or services even if doing so would result in the prosecution of many criminals who otherwise go unpunished. For those who want to balance the government's interest in prosecuting criminals against secure and private communications, the question I would ask is: how often do investigations or prosecutions fail because it was impossible to access encrypted data with a court order? A precise answer might be difficult since the content of the encrypted data is unknowable, but an upper bound could be established by assuming such encrypted data is always incriminating.