Naked Science Forum

General Discussion & Feedback => Just Chat! => Topic started by: DoctorBeaver on 14/08/2008 20:04:26

Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: DoctorBeaver on 14/08/2008 20:04:26
From The Times Online (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article4518226.ece)

Councils and health authorities are to be given the right to access e-mail and internet records under surveillance powers to be introduced next year, the Home Office said yesterday.

Although first proposed to tackle terrorism and serious crime, powers have been extended to cover other criminal activity, public health, threats to public safety and even prevention of self-harm.

The Home Office said that the move would involve internet service providers storing one billion incidents of data each day and storing them for a minimum of 12 months. Under the plans the taxpayer would pay £46 million to internet service providers for holding information, even though some already keep similar records for marketing purposes.

Opposition MPs criticised the plans as a “snoopers’ charter”. Dominic Grieve, the Shadow Home Secretary, said: “Yet again the Government has proved itself unable to resist the temptation to take a power quite properly designed to combat terrorism to snoop on the lives of ordinary people in everyday circumstances.” He added: “It is typical of this Government that it also intends to make the taxpayer pay extra for the privilege.”

Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, said: “Ministers have proven time and time again that they are not to be trusted with sensitive data, but they seem intent on pressing ahead with this snoopers’ charter.

“We will be told it is for use in combating terrorism and organised crime but if the powers are anything to go by, it will soon be used to spy on ordinary people’s kids, pets and bins.”

Details emerged in the government consultation paper published yesterday on plans for implementing an EU directive developed after the 7/7 London bombings. Records of every e-mail, internet session and telephone call made over the internet will be stored for a minimum of 12 months with police, local councils and other organisations able to access the details.

The information will include the date and times of the log-in and log-off from the internet – the “who, when, and where” of communication – but not the contents of calls, messages or lists of websites which had been accessed.

The Home Office consultation paper said: “The directive rightly refers to atrocities in London in making the case for adopting the measures for the retention of communication data across Europe.

“For many years this valuable data has allowed investigators to identify suspects, examine their contacts, establish relationships between conspirators and place them in a specific location.”

When the EU agreement on the deal was first reached, Charles Clarke, then Home Secretary, said it “placed a vital tool against terrorism and serious crime in the hands of law enforcement agencies across Europe”.

But yesterday the Home Office admitted that data would be held for much wider purposes than tackling terrorism and serious crime – and hundreds more organisations would be able to access it.

The emergency services, the Serious Organised Crime Agency, every local council, health authorities, the Post Office, Home Office, Ministry of Defence, Health and Safety Executive, Food Standards Agency and Post Office will have access to the information. Since last October telecoms companies have been required to keep records of phone calls and texts. Law enforcement agencies and other public bodies would appoint an “authorising officer” from within their own workforce who approves requests for data.

The request would be made in an official letter, signed by the “authorising officer”, to a named contact within a telecoms firm or internet service provider who would be required to provide the information. This year Sir Christopher Rose, the Chief Surveillance Commissioner, gave warning of the inexperience of some authorising officers in local councils and government departments.

Some internet service providers voluntarily keep data on internet and e-mail use for marketing and billing purposes.At present organisations seeking the records must approach individual internet service providers but the Home Office wants all data stored on one massive government database.


This government is totally power-mad, and getting even worse. If we breathe, they want to know. If we fart in the bath, they want to know. The UK already has the highest rate of surveillance of any country - higher even than the USSR or East Germany had.

What the hell does the NHS need with this information about us? Or the Post Office? Who will be allowed access next? DHL? McDonald's? That chap at number 26 who sells fuchsias from his garden? Dr Chris Smith? (erm... better forget I mentioned him). And as for councils - there are some councils I wouldn't want to even know that I exist!

OK, if the security services need to keep tabs on certain people they feel are a threat, that's 1 thing. But to give all and sundry access to what goes on in our own homes? Oooh, Doris and Elsie were swapping knitting patterns online. Maybe it's code for how to make a bomb!

If they want to keep tabs on all my emails, let them. I will get dozens of accounts on Hotmail, Yahoo, Googlemail etc and sign up to all those dodgy viagra sites, work from home schemes, insurance and mortgage advice services, send an open email to Nigeria saying I'm willing to have funds transferred into my account, and anywhere else I think I'll get lots of emails from. That should result in a few hundred from me alone every day. Anyone else care to join in?

For fek's sake kick these bas**rds out at the first opportunity and let's get some privacy back into our lives.
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: paul.fr on 14/08/2008 20:29:14

Councils and health authorities are to be given the right to access e-mail and internet records under surveillance powers to be introduced next year, the Home Office said yesterday.

But what makes you think "the other lot" will change these laws / policies?

Also, one way to avoid having you emails read is not to send any! What you do is have all your soviet spy friends use the same email account, and you just leave stuff in the drafts folder...a sort of dead drop. none of these emails are sent so they can not be intercepted...this is what we used to do when i was in Nam!
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: DoctorBeaver on 14/08/2008 20:33:04
Can you honestly imagine a bona fide terrorist sending an email detailing his plans to bomb Heathrow?

There are so many ways real criminals and terrorists could get round it. One very easy way is to create the text as a jpeg or GIF image and send it. Is their software going to try to decode and scan every image sent on the internet?

Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: paul.fr on 14/08/2008 20:37:16
Paul - there are so many ways real criminals and terrorists could get round it. Can you honestly imagine a bona fide terrorist sending an email detailing his plans to bomb Heathrow?

So are you saying that this is designed to "watch" the general public, and that the gov. local authority know they will not catch real crims or terroes, but it actually is a snoopers charter?!
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: DoctorBeaver on 14/08/2008 20:37:42
Paul - there are so many ways real criminals and terrorists could get round it. Can you honestly imagine a bona fide terrorist sending an email detailing his plans to bomb Heathrow?

So are you saying that this is designed to "watch" the general public, and that the gov. local authority know they will not catch real crims or terroes, but it actually is a snoopers charter?!

Yes.

(Sorry, I edited my post after you took the quote from it)
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: JimBob on 14/08/2008 23:18:43
Perhaps we all should move to Australia, hire our own private "security force" and settle in the far southwest of the country, which is a verdant place with a temperate climate and well away from the reaches of the country's governmental interference. All we need do is be careful of storms originating in the roaring 40's. As a plus, there is only one poisonous snake there and no poisonous spiders.
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: DoctorBeaver on 14/08/2008 23:23:21
I've been to Western Australila (Perth & Freemantle), but not the South West. I always fancied driving across the Nullarbor (Nulibor- however you want to spell it) in a big, juicy, supercharged Holden V8.
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: JimBob on 15/08/2008 01:24:46
Think We could get lost there - away from Big Brother? I know we could in Western Tasmania, but then again, I an not that stupid, either.
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: RD on 15/08/2008 14:32:48
What the hell does the NHS need with this information about us?

If you pay for private health treatment in addition to receiving NHS treatment,
there are circumstances where the receiving private treatment can result in the NHS treatment being withdrawn.

So NHS would wish to know information about any additional treatment you may be receiving elsewhere.
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: DoctorBeaver on 16/08/2008 09:32:56
What the hell does the NHS need with this information about us?

If you pay for private health treatment in addition to receiving NHS treatment,
there are circumstances where the receiving private treatment can result in the NHS treatment being withdrawn.

So NHS would wish to know information about any additional treatment you may be receiving elsewhere.

So that makes it OK for them to read my emails?

If I open my satellite box, the warranty is invalidated. Should the manufacturers have the right to check my emails to see if I've told anyone I've done that?
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: RD on 16/08/2008 11:11:21
If I open my satellite box, the warranty is invalidated.
Should the manufacturers have the right to check my emails to see if I've told anyone I've done that?


Opening the case of such a device will probably break a paper seal,
 so the manufacturer will know it has been opened if it is returned to them for repair.

Did you manage rewire the satellite box to get pay-per-view for free ?, on second thoughts better not answer that [:)] .
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: DoctorBeaver on 16/08/2008 11:14:33
That would be telling

(https://www.thenakedscientists.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fbestsmileys.com%2Fwink%2F2.gif&hash=dfc4e36668fe9d70a6b89b1326f9fab2)
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: JimBob on 16/08/2008 16:01:30
What is the address of the website that sells the instructions for the rewiring?
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: DoctorBeaver on 17/08/2008 11:31:31
www.fekupyourwarranty.com  [:D]
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: JimBob on 17/08/2008 15:13:21
I'll go one better - I'll Google this query instead of dealing with a smart-arse.
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: DoctorBeaver on 17/08/2008 18:58:49
You just don't like being outsmarted by a rodent.
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: JimBob on 19/08/2008 00:09:28
www.fekupyourwarranty.com  [:D]
You just don't like being outsmarted by a rodent.

You do mean "SMART-ARSED" by a rodent. I am sure it is a typo. Even you are not that dense  -- or are you?
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: DoctorBeaver on 19/08/2008 18:21:28
www.fekupyourwarranty.com  [:D]
You just don't like being outsmarted by a rodent.

You do mean "SMART-ARSED" by a rodent. I am sure it is a typo. Even you are not that dense  -- or are you?

James - You are the typo king. I posted exactly what I intended to.
Title: Big Brother is watching? So is little brother, sister, cousin, great aunt...
Post by: JimBob on 20/08/2008 00:29:14
The I was ""SMART-ARSED" by a rodent."