Every Bit You Make

All this time I thought the neocons were selling off my privacy for power and personal gain, and it turns out they're only doing their best to keep our children safe (actually, I don't have kids. I have dogs...) by tracking our internet activities!

How the hell did we end up on the same side as the ISP's? Below are some excerpts:

This sounds like a fantastic idea!

"That might be a model for some kind of data retention issue," Chertoff said. "It might be one that would say the government, instead of holding the data itself, will allow it to remain in the private sector, provided the private sector retains it for a period of time so we can ping against it."

Privatization of private data. What could be more natural than that? As long as it remains in private hands, isn't privacy maintained?

"...While we respect and understand the needs and concerns of the law enforcement agencies, there is also a need to take personal privacy concerns and the broader needs of business into consideration."

See? They care about us and our privacy... and this stuff about broader needs of business.

Jim Harper, director of information policy studies at the free-market Cato Institute, was the member of the Homeland Security's Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee who asked Chertoff about data retention last month.

...Harper warned that mandatory data retention may cause more harm than good. "The true criminals will go and use random Wi-Fi nodes where you can get anonymous access," he said. "You haven't done anything but increase surveillance of law-abiding citizens."

Yeah Jim! Way to go Cato... What the fuck am I saying?!?!!

Here are some more gems:

Don't miss out on this one about invading your children's privacy to protect them from sexual predators.

http://cbs4boston.com/seenon/local_story_102221323.html

This is an older article from 2003 that got dug today:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/03/28/use_a_firewall_go/

the section of the texas bill in question:

SECTION 6. Sections 31.14(a), (b), and (d), Penal Code, are amended to read as follows: (a) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally or knowingly manufactures, assembles, imports into the state, exports out of the state, distributes, advertises, sells, or leases, or offers for sale or lease: (1) a communication device with an intent to: (A) aid in the commission of an offense under Section 31.12 or 31.13; or (B) conceal from a communication service provider, or from any lawful authority, the existence or place of origin or destination of any communication; (2) an unauthorized access device; or (3) plans or instructions for assembling or manufacturing a communication device or unauthorized access device, with the knowledge that another person intends to use the plans or instructions for an unlawful purpose .

and the Mass law:

(b) Offense defined.Any person commits an offense if he knowingly:

(1) possesses, uses, manufactures, develops, assembles, distributes, transfers, imports into this state, licenses, leases, sells or offers, promotes or advertises for sale, use or distribution any communication device:

(i) for the commission of a theft of a communication service or to receive, intercept, disrupt, transmit, re-transmits, decrypt, acquire or facilitate the receipt, interception, disruption, transmission, re-transmission, decryption or acquisition of any communication service without the express consent or express authorization of the communication service provider; or

(ii) to conceal or to assist another to conceal from any communication service provider, or from any lawful authority, the existence or place of origin or destination of any communication; or

(2) modifies, alters, programs or reprograms a communication device for the purposes described in subparagraphs (b)(1)(i) and (ii) above; or

Can't we just pay thirty bucks to get the identities of sexual predators instead of all the above laws?

Here is a short list of commercial Web sites to consider if you are looking to delve into someone's background. Features vary, but in general, expect to find access to records dealing with birth, death, adoption, bankruptcy, mortgages, marriages, divorces, felonies, small claims, foreclosures, tax liens, lawsuits, arrest warrants, and more.

Wait a second! I thought corporate America was on our side... There's definitely no where to hide.

http://www.toptechnews.com/story.xhtml?story_id=13200D7ZTNXC&page=3

Selling identities for fun and profit:

Here is a short list of commercial Web sites to consider if you are looking to delve into someone's background. Features vary, but in general, expect to find access to records dealing with birth, death, adoption, bankruptcy, mortgages, marriages, divorces, felonies, small claims, foreclosures, tax liens, lawsuits, arrest warrants, and more.

Of course the government has to get involved:

Even routine transactions find their way into commercial and government people databases.

"Thanks to the U.S. government and big corporations, more and more of this information is being aggregated and linked together, which creates a sense of constant surveillance," said Forrester's Penn.

Does anyone know specifics about privacy laws in Europe and Japan?:

"To solve this problem," Jaquith said, "we will need something like the European or the Japanese privacy laws. Those measures are very restrictive on who can post private information and what can be done with it."

In those countries, protections are so strict that a person's private information is treated like radioactive material, he added.

Speaking of radioactivity, does Iran have privacy laws?

And finally, how does this article blogged by josephina jive with Japan's great privacy laws?

Last week, Japan started issuing its first electronic passports (e-passports). Every five-year, 10-year and diplomatic passport the government issues will now include an RFID tag. The country expects to dispense more than 3.5 million e-passports within the next 12 months, with all Japanese passports will expected to carry an RFID chip within the next 10 years.