In 1999, cryptographer Daniel Bernstein challenged the U.S. government to secure protection for computer code under the First Amendment. The case centered around the government’s classification of strong encryption tools as weapons, requiring individuals who sought to publish cryptographic software to register as arms dealers. Bernstein's work on a new encryption method, Snuffle, faced hurdles from authorities regarding its publication. With support from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Bernstein's lawsuit led to a landmark decision in which Judge Marilyn Patel ruled that code should be regarded as speech, establishing constitutional protections for cryptographers’ right to express themselves through code. This ruling not only advanced the freedom to code but also facilitated the rise of strong encryption technologies vital to the expansion of e-commerce and privacy online. Without this pivotal case, innovations like Bitcoin could have been significantly delayed due to restrictive licensing requirements on software publication.

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