Microsoft denies handing 'backdoor' access to police

In a statement to BetaNews this afternoon, a Microsoft spokesperson denied that a technology unveiled at a law enforcement conference in Seattle on Monday would be used to equip officers and investigators with "backdoors" into Windows systems, as various blogs and news sources have since speculated.

"COFEE does not circumvent Windows Vista BitLocker encryption or undermine any protections in Windows through secret 'backdoors' or other undocumented means," reads Microsoft's explanation to BetaNews today.

According to a transcript of the talk at the Law Enforcement Technology Conference 2008, posted on Microsoft's Web site, Brad Smith, Microsoft VP and general counsel, described COFEE as "a Swiss Army knife [for] law enforcement officers."

Smith went on to say that the USB fob contains 150 software tools aimed at helping police with the job of forensics, or crime investigation.

"It can be programmed to do all of the work automatically, in which case it can do what it needs to do in about 20 minutes, instead of four hours. But we also designed it to be a platform, if you will, so you are your colleagues can customize it further, if you like," according to the general counsel.