Tim Berners-Lee Says UK's Net Spying Plans Would Be 'Destruction Of Human Rights'
from the and-he-should-know dept
Not content with inventing the Web and then giving it away, Tim Berners-Lee remains highly active in warning about the threats the Internet and its users face. Most recently he has taken on the British government's disproportionate plans to store information about every email sent and Web page visited in the UK:
Sir Tim Berners-Lee, who serves as an adviser to the government on how to make public data more accessible, says the extension of the state's surveillance powers would be a "destruction of human rights" and would make a huge amount of highly intimate information vulnerable to theft or release by corrupt officials. In an interview with the Guardian, Berners-Lee said: "The amount of control you have over somebody if you can monitor internet activity is amazing."
What's particularly useful about his latest intervention is not just the authority with which he speaks on this subject, but the specificity of his warning:
"The idea that we should routinely record information about people is obviously very dangerous. It means that there will be information around which could be stolen, which can be acquired through corrupt officials or corrupt operators, and [could be] used, for example, to blackmail people in the government or people in the military. We open ourselves out, if we store this information, to it being abused."
That is, even leaving aside concerns about crucially important issues such as privacy and total surveillance, the UK plans are an awful idea from a purely practical viewpoint: they will actually make the UK less safe for all the reasons that Berners-Lee lists. Because of this fundamental flaw, he emphasizes:
"the most important thing to do is to stop the bill as it is at the moment"
Let's hope the UK government listens to its own adviser, at least.
Follow me @glynmoody on Twitter or identi.ca, and on Google+
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Filed Under: human rights, internet freedom, spying, tim berners-lee, uk
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
News of the World
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: News of the World
In other News I must propose a "National Link Day" !!!!
Frakken Millions of people all Link to the same "Infringing" material for one day in Protest.
Looks like the UK Gov is just as Corrupted as our USA Gov
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: News of the World
It's just hiding in plain sight or just around the corner...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Just imagine: in the old days, hackers had to intercept communications or use social engineering to steal bank credentials. With this, they just need to attack one machine and will instantly have access to the credentials of the majority of the people.
Isn't that just awesome? For the hackers, I mean. It will kinda suck for everyone else.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
I've been pointing this out for years.
There are two ways to get your hands on private data:
1. Steal it.
2. Wait for someone else to steal it, and then steal it from them.
Now, of course, governments will tell you that (2) isn't possible where they're concerned.
They are lying.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re:
Their IT history is abysmal with billion of �s being wasted on projects, some of which never come to fruition or are not fit for purposes but are wheeled out anyway.
Their history of protecting data is also awful, with laptops left on trains. CDs floating around. Websites left unprotected. Data left open on systems with easy access for anyone with the nouse to look.
As the AC above said, this will become a one-stop shop for hackers. They'll be able to obtain all kinds of data just on the basis of what has been proposed so far. I would also not be surprised if their was further amendments in the future, with government gradually adding more and more data to the system and so making it an even more attractive target.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Parliament should do this:
"Due to retroactive patenting of the Web" said Sir Tim in an interview yesterday, "I have been able to assert copyright on everything published via the Web, and any entity stealing money from the UK without a licence will be sued for statutory damages of �200 per infringement, plus 3x profits. This will end the recession in the UK and lead to a glorious future of technological progress and innovation."
When asked about future and retroactive licensing costs, Sir Tim replied "Licences will be available from a body to be set up by the government some time next year. Costs fir using the Web will simply be your firstborn, but if you wish to make money on it you will have to buy a licence, nominally charged at �1 per person. No, that's based on the number of people able to view the content, so about �2 bn a pop should be fine. We have worked out fair and equitable costs based on the best evidence and methodologies developed by the content industries."
A parliamentary spokesman also later clarified another part of the bill, regarding who would be liable for what. "In order to simplfy liability for 17 years of illegal use of the UK's World-Wide Web service, it has been decided that all content publishers are liable for their own content, wherever it may be found. So if a dozen people publish 'Avatar' over the Web, then James Cameron is liable as the creator/publisher of the content for each one and its availability to all 7 billion people on the planet."
Rumours that costs would also be applied to all exoplanets within 17+ light years on the basis of the Earth's population on each were strongly denied by Parliament.'
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Parliament should do this:
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Parliament should do this:
Plus I'd just read the other recent articles and was all steamed up :)
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
that wont happen because it is the same sort of thing that is going on in the USA atm. that's where the idea has come from in the first place and gutless Cameron just keeps 'bending over and grabbing his ankles on the White House lawn' instead of standing up for UK citizens!
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Advisors?
Ha. Chance would be a fine thing. Just ask Dr David Nutt.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
It's like the daft idea of having to 'apply' to get certain political speech or 'pr0n' allowed on your computer - who will decide what is 'ok', what hoops will you have to jomp through to do so, and which insecure government lists and databases will you end up on?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
And this is why they will go ahead and do it anyway, with total disregard and willful abandon.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
film at eleven.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Unlike the Coconuts that supposed to be the brains on some ignorant politician...
I wonder if those politicians played too much "Plants Vs Zombies" and got their brains eaten for real?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
The Internet isn't an Industry
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
This sucks who do I vote for when both sides are working for the same goddamn team?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Keep Your Enemies Close
Governments are protecting themselves from you. Why might that be?
What better way to shore up protections? Fear. Every bleepin thing you've ever passed or will pass on the wire neatly cataloged. All of your travels and transactions, cataloged. Quite the deterrent that. If you were to ask me I'd say that there are folks that are afraid, very afraid.
Shut up, go to work and pay your taxes.
Encrypt and carry a big stick. Or, simply, live and die knowing that something, somewhere is not quite right.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Keep Your Enemies Close
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Please let us Scots get independence !
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Good man!
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
[ link to this | view in chronology ]