Patriot 2 Encryption An Aggravating Circumstance

Declan McCullagh asks a good question on the cryptography list:

When encryption is omnipresent in everything from wireless
networks to hard drives to SSH clients, might the basic effect of such a
law [Patriot 2] be to boost potential maximum prison terms by five years?

It is a terrible idea to presume that using encryption is an aggravating circumstance. “Why are you using encryption? You must have something to hide…”

Original SAFE Act: https://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d105:h.r.00695:
Leaked new Patriot Act 2 draft: https://www.privacy.org/patriot2draft.pdf