Edward Snowden is a former National Security Agency contractor known for whistleblowing, or releasing to the public a form of government corruption. According to Snowden, the United States government has kept secret the extent to which it monitors not only people from other countries but also its own people. The government is capable of accessing people’s phone records and can crack people’s email passwords in order to check their emails. Snowden, when he learned this information, felt that it was an invasion of privacy and decided to reveal this secret to the American people. His actions made him a traitor to the United States and he was forced to seek asylum.
Privacy is a very sacred thing, and every individual’s should be respected. If the government encroaches upon an individual’s privacy, it has violated its citizens’ trust. With free speech and freedom of the press, an individual has access to many resources through which they can find data. If the government monitors what its citizens are searching for, it is violating the fundamental social contract that it has with the American people. In a perfect society, privacy and government power would be balanced and the government would be able to use the information it gains to create a safer environment for the American people. In reality, there are no boundaries to what the government can monitor and look at, something not brought to light until Snowden.
In the article “Privacy can't depend on corporations standing up to the government”, Snowden talks of how free software's transparency and openness are cornerstones to preserving user privacy in the connected age. He believes that private data these days only stays private at the sufferance of the major tech companies that administer devices and services. Given the increasing centrality of smartphones and social networks and the myriad of other digital communication methods to modern life, simply trusting that those tech companies will protect their users' privacy is insufficient.
In my opinion, while privacy is an important thing that must be respected, the government does need to do something in order to protect its people. Both sides need to find a balance so that citizens do not feel their privacy is being invaded and the government can do its best to protect its citizens and create a safer country.
http://www.networkworld.com/article/3046135/security/edward-snowden-privacy-cant-depend-on-corporations-standing-up-to-the-government.html
I agree with the final statement about there needing to be a way to bridge the gap between the people and the government. In my opinion, Snowden is right with everything he does and says because a lot of people are completely clueless to the fact that they are not private at all, when on the internet. I believe what Snowden is trying to push is what the government is also trying to push under the radar. The government wants to put a lot of laws into place that Snowden believes they can already do, and already do on a regular basis. I think that is the governments way of saying that we can do all of this and we do not want to do it illegally, but if the law does not pass, then we will do it illegally. Privacy with technology is just a scary thing today because of the way the government can misinterpret stuff, along with the fact terrorist attacks are made easier with the expansion of technology and encryption methods. Overall, I believe I personally have nothing to hide because I know the reality of the internet, but I believe an average person who does not have an MIS degree or some sort of technology degree should be able to understand what they are getting into when they get on the internet and do whatever they decide to do.
ReplyDeleteThe article points out that with open source/free software, its transparency allows you to trust the source code and know what works and what doesn't. Snowden goes on to say, "I didn't use Microsoft machines when I was in my operational phase, because I couldn't trust them, not because I knew that there was a particular back door or anything like that, but because I couldn't be sure."
ReplyDeleteThat is why open source is so valuable to someone who needs to trust the system. Of course, he was talking to the Free Software Foundation's LibrePlanet event at MIT (via video of course).
Snowden also said that many tech giants have already proven more than willing to hand over user data to a government they rely on for licensing and a favorable regulatory climate.
He particularly singled out service providers as being complicit in overreaching government surveillance.
"We can't control telecom partners," Snowden stated. "We're very vulnerable to them."
And the story goes on...