[ insider_reports_insider ]
Government Wants To Redefine Privacy
David Utter
Staff Writer
2007-11-13
 Insider Reports RSS Feed
Forget about anonymity. A highly-placed government intelligence official thinks it's time for Americans to get used to domestic spying.
 | | Government Wants To Redefine Privacy |  |
Items that show a countdown to the Bush Administration's last day in office have held some appeal for those who disagree with policies stemming from the White House. January 20, 2009, can't come fast enough for them.
It's probably too far away for anyone who values at least the semblance of privacy online, where privacy includes a degree of anonymity for the individual. As Boing Boing indicated, privacy as a concept could be getting a significant reworking.
"Donald Kerr, the US Principal Deputy Director of Intelligence, has decided to kill privacy," cory Doctorow wrote.
"He says that human beings can no longer expect governments and companies not to spy on them; instead "privacy" will now mean having the right to expect that governments and companies won't tell other people what they learn when they spy on you."
That's nice. Governments and companies tend not to share this information with competitors, or anyone else, willingly. Who exactly does the Administration think people expect it to share information with anyway?
The Guardian noted Kerr's comments, which arrive amidst the discussion of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). The Bush Administration wants to do away with the need for a court order conducted domestically.
The issue of security poses all kinds of problems for security pros. It calls for an ongoing balancing act. Kerr's point of view doesn't just tip the seesaw too far in one direction; it throws away the fulcrum completely.
Security pros have to balance security concerns each day. They can't just disregard the needs of users for the sake of information integrity. The government must be doing something right under current constraints, as there have been no further terrorist attacks in the US since 9/11.
The Administration's desire for even greater access to thumb through the lives of everyday Americans serves no security purpose. It's a grab for control, not security, and Congress would do well to remember this.
Law enforcement and the executive branch should have the tools they need to do their jobs. Someone should ask if one of those tools needs to be a flamethrower.
About the Author:
David Utter is a business and technology writer for SecurityProNews and WebProNews.
More insider_reports_insider Articles
Insider Reports RSS Feed
|
|
RSS
Archive
Contact Us
Advertise
