This phenomenon has become very real , in recent times. We see continued changes in law that dictate that government agencies be allowed access to public data on the internet or phone etc ..
Some class it as direct violation of the information data protection act. But governments insist , its to make security better and its not a Big Brother environment they are trying to create.
What about you and me who are at the receiving end? Should we be concerned ? does this snooping carry intense risks? what are they , should we be worried about this snooping and start seeing it positively? what are your thoughts on this?
Personally, I dont find myself getting worried coz I have nothing to hide, so in a way, I do feel its an unnecessary hype. But its still important for me to know why people get so worried about this?
I also feel that our security agencies are actually doing this to protect us as well. so why not support them rather than stop them? or is this power to listen into our conversations giving them too much power, power that they may end up abusing even? I dont know ..
Kaka, its thought provoking , now that you mentioned 1984, actually isnt that the sort of what Chinese government is doing to the public , but that is like total control over their public opinion.
But does that equate to a government agency snooping in for security reasons? should we believe the government when they say they are not going to use the information in any other way to control our lives?
if i have nothing to hide then why worry? let them dig out whatever they desire…besides, your vital info is being exchanged/bought/sold by businesses all the time whether you like it or not.
in this age, nothing is sacred or personal anymore and it will get worse with time. you can’t hide anymore…fones follow you, your personal data runs ahead of you.
they know who you are, where you live, where you work, how much you make, how much you save, where you live, how many people in your household, what’s the layout of your dwelling…Gharaz k sabhii kuchh to unko pataa hai.
knowing what you search online, what you borrow and read from the library will not make such a big difference. will it?
oh yeah, one more thing…in Ontario, they will know when someone is home, when you take shower, when you leave home and when you come home by just monitoring your water meter.
If they already know so much then why are they wanting to turn it into a law? I guess the only thing protecting us right now is that organizations arent allowed to share information freely with each other due to data protection ?
The government wants you to do something. You resist. They pull your ‘files’ out and find something out that you do not wish to be made public. You are forced into doing it.
Some people do not have any ‘secrets’. But a lot of people do. Those ‘secrets’ might not be significant for the government or society, but for the individuals they could have devastating consequences.
yeah , I see the perspective and its very dangerous indeed. At the individual level it certainly makes sense. But since now governments are trying to make it legal to snoop, what can individuals do to stop them? governments are powerful
I’m not sure how many people are aware in the UK, but parliament is rushing through emergency data legislation (snoopers charter) due to “surveillance on terrorism”. I remember when the internet used to be a place where you can express free will, now you can end up getting arrested for giving your opinion by the internet police.
“The ultimate goal of the NSA is total population control”, Binney said, “but I’m a little optimistic with some recent Supreme Court decisions, such as law enforcement mostly now needing a warrant before searching a smartphone.”
Sentry, I had that law change in mind when I started the discussion .
Problem is , if we see the other side of the coin, it makes it so much difficult to decide what side to choose. For example if there are no controls over internet, then nasty people can get away with extremely dangerous comments and threats that they make anonymously on social media . For example when the Lee Rigby incident happened, some really awful threats were made again muslims and kids by EDL supporters and that genuinely ran a spin down the spine .
If Police hadnt stepped in, in charging those individuals, I would have felt really insecure , as an individual.
So in a way , this really helps as well and that is what makes it difficult to decide which strategy is best , snooping or resisting against it
Most the internet has always been a free zone. No one has controlled it. If people express their real opinion on a matter who does it hurt? Block buttons, and safe options have always been added to all websites to stop annon people from contacting you etc. The fact people who use the interwebs don’t use this but then cry about being harassed, is just down to their own naivety. It’s down to admins of websites to protect their users, I don’t believe it’s right for governments to restrict or get involved in these types of matters.
I remember reading some of the threats made by EDL and other racists however, it’s just threats, opinions and words. On the other side you get extremists making threats which our newspapers gladly publish for the whole country. What’s the difference?
Police stepping in and queestioning or charging those people will never make a difference. There’s always ways around hiding an IP. If snooper laws come into place, re-directed proxies will go through the roof so that people can express their true opinions.
you are making sense there Sentry. I think as an individual I felt protected when Police stepped in , because I felt such people are held accountable for any form of threat and they will come under the Police radar. After all our opinions can have a greater impact on the society.
The ones you should worry about are the ones who don’t even give there opinion online but out of nowhere they commit a crime. Those are the real sinisters of earth.
There’s a difference between a “threat” and a intention to commit that threat, which would identify if it’s a criminal offence. Personally I think 99% of online threats have no intention added to it. Obviously from extremist groups etc, the intention exists.
I dont know ..