Freedom, Surveillance and Executive Power

Every time I walk past a surveillance camera… …I feel shame. It is not because I have done anything wrong. It is because we have allowed the politicians in our country (UK) to change from representatives to suppressors. The implementation of an almost universal system of watching has not made our society safer, it has…

Privacy threatened in staggering undemocratic move by UK Government

Anti-privacy legislation in Parliament New anti-privacy legislation is being tabled for Parliamentary time this week. The “Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill” (DRIP) is being rushed through parliament with NO public scrutiny and no independent consultation at a public level. It is legislation that threatens our privacy. IT is happening in the face of the…

I just wrote to my MP about the DRIP Bill…

New legislation tabled for Parliamentary time on the 15th of July threatens the very existence of our privacy – and thereby freedom. The “Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Bill” is being rushed through parliament with NO public scrutiny and no independent consultation at a public level. You can find the DRIP Bill here: Data Retention…

What is surveillance? Am I affected?

The eye is on you! “Surveillance”, in most peoples eyes, involves nights in cars outside suspects houses. Or perhaps covert operations with cameras pointed between closed curtains from darkened rooms. This is a modern mythology. The drama of the TV screen is far from the surveillance we are all under in our every day lives.…

The Surveillance State

Government acts in my interest doesn’t it? Our democratic governments are there for our benefit. They are meant to protect us, defend the state against enemies and ensure our way of life is preserved. Modern computer technologies, digital cameras and vast networks of other technologies are all involved in that process. On the surface it…

Software vulnerability creates enemies

The problem with websites… You can be anywhere in the world and people can still break in. This applies to houses, cars and other locked places – including websites. Of course websites don’t have locks like doors. But they do have sophisticated security. Like any security, software can be broken into. Usually people can break…

The data problem in a technological society

Data files create a data problem In our technological society there is a data problem. Computer files are the basic sources of information for most purposes. That includes information about citizens – you. If the many data files about you are joined up they tell a story. It can be misinterpreted. It can be manipulated.…