Admiral Michael Rogers told a Washington cybersecurity forum that he does not believe Americans should be divided on the issue of encryption -- which makes it nearly impossible for outside parties to gain access, even in some cases with a warrant.
Rogers said that in the fight against terrorism, the concerns are the same as in law enforcement, and endorsed the view expressed by FBI director James Comey on gaining access to encrypted mobile devices.
"Broadly, I share director Comey's concern," Rogers said.
"Most of the debate I've seen is that it's either all or nothing, that it's either total encryption or no encryption at all."
Rogers said it should be feasible to "come up with a legal framework that enables us within some quasi-process to address... Valid concerns if I have indications to believe that this phone, that this path is being used for criminal, or in my case, foreign intelligence or national security issues."
"We have shown in other areas that through both technology and a legal framework and a social compact that we can take on tough issues, and I hope we can do the same thing here," he said.
The NSA has come under intense scrutiny both at home and abroad after former contractor Edward Snowden leaked documents about government surveillance programs that sweep up vast amounts of data from Internet and phone communications.
Rogers declined to comment on the latest reports from last week that the NSA implanted spyware on commercially made hard drives, and that it worked with British intelligence to hack into the world's biggest maker of SIM cards to be able to access mobile communications.
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