Cambodia Wants Mandatory Surveillance Cameras In Internet Cafes

from the don't-give-them-ideas dept

Tue, Sep 25th 2012 5:22am — Glyn Moody

Large-scale surveillance of private communications is becoming depressingly routine, even in supposedly enlightened democracies. In less freedom-loving locations, Internet cafes are viewed with particular suspicion, and subject to tight controls. But it looks like Cambodia is taking surveillance of Internet cafes in particular, and communications in general, to new heights/depths:

All telecommunications operators, sales outlets and distributors are obliged to register their business at local authorities. Meanwhile, all locations serving telephone services and Internet shall be equipped with closed circuit television camera and shall store footage data of users for at least 03 months. Telephone service corporation owners along public roads shall record National Identity Cards of any subscriber.

Alarmingly, the Global Voices story quoted above suggests that there's more to come: The circular could be a model for a more comprehensive cyber legislation which the government plans to enact this year.
In the good old days, the West might have criticized such moves as disproportionate and oppressive. But as has happened with censorship, it long ago lost what moral authority it had in the area of surveillance. Probably the most we can hope to do is to stop our own governments following suit.

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Filed Under: cambodia, internet cafe, surveillance

17 Comments

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Anonymous Coward, 25 Sep 2012 @ 5:30am

" it long ago lost what moral authority it had in the area of surveillance."

No, actually they are learning to butt out of things that are none of their damn business. Most of the problems in the world today can be traced back to the politics of trying to tell someone else they aren't doing something 'right'.

Obama has been very good at not starting stupid wars.
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silverscarcat (profile), 25 Sep 2012 @ 5:38am

Re:
"No, actually they are learning to butt out of things that are none of their damn business. Most of the problems in the world today can be traced back to the politics of trying to tell someone else they aren't doing something 'right'."

Now if only more people listened to Ron Paul, who was saying stuff like that back in the 80s.

Maybe we wouldn't have had this stupid war that's gone on for more than a decade now.
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Anonymous Coward, 25 Sep 2012 @ 5:38am

Re:
Regardless of administration, the State Department is very capable of criticizing or admonishing foreign government action without it resulting in war.

It's funny that you think the government has learned to mind its own business though.
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Zos (profile), 25 Sep 2012 @ 5:40am

Re:
given how many places we've got troops on the ground, the idea that anyone's learned anything about butting out of things that don't concern them seems pretty laughable.

and i suppose it all depends on what you'd consider a "war"
we'll just have to agree to disagree there.

I mean...extrajudicial killing of an american without trial via dronestrike pretty much did it for me, even leaving aside the "war" question.
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Anonymous Coward, 25 Sep 2012 @ 5:46am

Re:
"No, actually they are learning to butt out of things that are none of their damn business."

That has actually been standard policy for "big" countries (USA, Russia, France...you get the picture). But you forgot a few steps:

1- Fuck everything up somewhere else.
2- Pull out once you've lost interest (A.K.A., once they start killing too many of your own people).
3- Let them sort it themselves.

Your precious Obama is just finishing implementing 3 so that he can go back to 1. He just needs an excuse...also money, but mostly he needs an excuse.
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Anonymous Coward, 25 Sep 2012 @ 5:48am

it's just paving the way for the rest of the world that hasn't already done something similar. that includes democracies like the USA, UK, France, Sweden etc. there is basically no such thing as privacy in any way, shape or form any more. this is mainly due to the paranoia of the USA government who have gone back to the suspicion of the 50s where there was 'a red under every bed'! now though, it's a terrorist or a whistle blower!
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abc gum, 25 Sep 2012 @ 5:50am

Wow - that devolved quickly.
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Anonymous Coward, 25 Sep 2012 @ 5:54am

Re: Re:
Whoa, whoa. If he leads with naivety, there's no need to trump with crazy.
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weneedhelp (profile), 25 Sep 2012 @ 7:09am

Re:
O B A M A ! ! ! And has done NOTHING to correct the stupid wars, or bring troops home.

I hope I still have change in my pocket to pay the bills when these jokers get done with bankrupting the country.
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weneedhelp (profile), 25 Sep 2012 @ 7:15am

Re: Re: Re:
RP hater. Most likely has no clue about RP.

He just listens to O'Riley & Hannity. Typical.
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Seegras (profile), 25 Sep 2012 @ 7:18am

The circular could be a model for a more fascist cyber legislation which the government plans to enact this year.

There, I fixed it.
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Anonymous Coward, 25 Sep 2012 @ 8:00am

Re: Re:
"O B A M A ! ! ! And has done NOTHING to correct the stupid wars, or bring troops home. "

It's why I love this place - the uninformed don't seem to have any problems coming in here and spouting nonsense.

Answer these questions:

On the day Obama was sworn in, how many troops were in Iraq? How many are there today?

On the day Obama was sworn in, how many troops were in Afghanistan? How many today?

Thank you.
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Anonymous Coward, 25 Sep 2012 @ 8:26am

Re: Re: Re:
well in Afghanistan it would be +33K

but dont let facts get in the way...
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Anonymous Coward, 25 Sep 2012 @ 12:07pm

Re: Re: Re: Re:
I don't want this to turn into a political chat, but although I could let the first part pass, the second is just insulting.

First, it is perfectly reasonable for someone well informed about Ron Paul and disagree with his policies. It is also possible to agree with some of his policies and still believe that others are not only unworkable but dangerous to attempt to implement.

Second, I get my news mainly from CSPAN, since I don't particularly like to have my views given to me by aging, angry millionaires who host entertainment shows disguised as news and designed only to infuriate aging, angry, middle-class people and con them into believing whatever it is they're peddling.

So good on you for wanting to bring troops home and disband the TSA. Congratulations on wanting someone pushing for personal liberty and government accountability. None of those things excuse the man for wanting to go back to the gold standard, imposing a national sales tax, wanting to bring religion into schools, being a bigot, leaving NATO and the US, or any of the other crazy shit that goes through his head.

I don't even want to go back to the 50s. Ron Paul wants to go back to the 1650s.
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Anonymous Coward, 25 Sep 2012 @ 12:08pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:
NATO & the UN*
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Zos (profile), 25 Sep 2012 @ 12:25pm

Re:
it always does man.
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John Fenderson (profile), 25 Sep 2012 @ 2:34pm

Re: Re: Re: Re:
That seems a leap. I can't stomach Oreilly and his ilk, and everything I know about RP I learned from RP and his supporters. What I've learned is that while I largely agree with him on foreign affairs, I find that his domestic policies incredibly objectionable. Crazy is in the eye of the beholder, and I think it's an exaggeration in RP's case, but not that much of one.
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