U.K. to give new meaning to "Big Brother" is watching

[aedipuss]

"The Communications Data Bill (2008) will lead to the creation of a single, centralized database containing records of all e-mails sent, websites visited and mobile phones used by UK citizens. In a carnivore-on-steroids programme, as all vestiges of communication privacy are stripped away, The BBC reports that Home Secretary Jacqui Smith says this is a 'necessity'."


holy cow batman, what's next implanted id transmitters in everyone?

[mh2360]

It's not really the UK's idea, it's just the ratification of EU Directive 2006/24/EC.

On 15 March 2006 the European Union formally adopted Directive 2006/24/EC, on "the retention of data generated or processed in connection with the provision of publicly available electronic communications services or of public communications networks and amending Directive 2002/58/EC" [1][2]

The Directive requires Member States to ensure that communications providers must retain, for a period of between 6 months and 2 years, necessary data as specified in the Directive

* to trace and identify the source of a communication;
* to trace and identify the destination of a communication;
* to identify the date, time and duration of a communication;
* to identify the type of communication;
* to identify the communication device;
* to identify the location of mobile communication equipment.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telecommunications_data_retention

Though the UK may be taking it a little further:

The capability to remotely activate the microphones of some mobile telephones. The UK Financial Times of the 2nd August 2005 [page 4 of the UK edition] reported that the UK police can ask mobile phone operators to download special spying software to a mobile telephone without the user’s knowledge or permission. When this has been done the authorities can turn on the microphone of a mobile telephone and listen to any conversations in its vicinity. This capability only exists for mobile telephones which can accept downloaded software. The telephone must be turned on for the microphone to be activated, but the user does not have to be making a call.

This seems to be of little value as a phone tapped conversation can not be used as evidence in UK courts (for now).

[IKnowNothing]

I'd be interested in how on earth they are going to do all this for a start they'd be collecting terabytes per day!!

Phone call records are already kept by phone companies and police etc can have access by request so direct access to their data is a logical extension of current powers. How on earth they log which sites you visit and know who actually viewed the site is beyond me. After all from my IP address we have about 100 people viewing pages!

Last , of course, I you want to make your email private use some form of PGP encryption. I know it's not unbreakable but it's difficult and if they want to decrypt say 1 million emails they'll need a hell of a lot of computing power!

In total I think the bill is badly thought out and impractical and is probably a knee jerk reaction by a half asleep minister (or civil servant) which once seen in the cold light of day will wither and die in to the obscurity of 42 days detention. (or at least I hope it does)

[gadgetguy]

If I read this correctly, they are not keeping email content, but rather the data about emails that are sent/received. Still not a very practical idea, not only from a storage standpoint, which could pretty easily be flooded to capacity, but consider what it would take to be able to scan and process that information to come up with anything useful. Even Data with the resources of the Enterprise would have trouble processing all of that.

[RabidDog]

They do aim to collect terror-bytes!
Anyone who thinks that any new law will only be used in extremis, has only to look at the recent banking crisis in Iceland. The BritGOv used anti-terrorist laws to stop the movement of Icelandic bank funds out of Britain. This Bill is wholly impractical.. they can't keep the data they've got, let alone get Exabytes more...I'd say more.. but you never know who's reading this..

Tasers are meant to be a last resort alternative to shooting somebody: Tell that to DeMenezes
Even if you dont have anything to hide; they're still after you.

[noemi7]

...and the database will leak 'accidentally' someday, like it happened a few times recently
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Yet-Another-Data-Leak-from-the-UK-Ministry-of-Defense-94403.shtml

[Alanino]

Geez - its not big brother or anything too sinister.
I think you will find that this stems from the fact that more people now use VOIP, and although at the moment the government can trace/record traditional phone-line calls - they need a change to the law so they can either get information they need from the ISP, or they monitor everything themselves.

Anyway, if your doing nothing wrong you have nothing to worry about.
If you disagree with this, then you're basically giving terrorists a free rein.

[sambat]

Anyway, if your doing nothing wrong you have nothing to worry about.
If you disagree with this, then you're basically giving terrorists a free rein.

I guess the poor sod who got his head blown apart in the London Underground slipped through the fail safe part.

[gadgetguy]

Anyway, if your doing nothing wrong you have nothing to worry about.
If you disagree with this, then you're basically giving terrorists a free rein.

That's a very naive position. Try telling that to anyone who's ever had their identity stolen. I have no problem with collecting data on suspected criminals, terrorists, or other wrong-doers, but there is no justification for collecting data on anyone and everyone.

[paulw]

Anyway, if your doing nothing wrong you have nothing to worry about.
If you disagree with this, then you're basically giving terrorists a free rein.

I guess the poor sod who got his head blown apart in the London Underground slipped through the fail safe part.

+
It sounds to me like the great GOV brainwashing in the UK is working. Now which Nazis did they beat in WW2??

[isogonic]

Geez - its not big brother or anything too sinister.

not big brother?? you got to be kidding. what is it then

[mpack]

This doesn't seem to me any more sinister than the state keeping records of phone call's you've made, which happens in the US as well. There are far more sinister things happening in the UK at the moment that people certainly should be worried about, for example the attempt to increase the time someone can be held without charge from 28 days to 42 (thankfully the Lords, ie. the second house, squashed that one a few days ago). I thought 28 days was already draconian enough - and I believe the US equivalent is what, something like 48 hours?

The argument that "only those with something to hide need have anything to fear" is asinine. It's the recipe for a totalitarian state.