The growing problem of government surveillance
The growing problem of government surveillance
The internet is being regulated more and more by governments, but is it a good thing?
There’s a global war going on right now. I’m not talking about Syria, I’m talking about the war on the Internet. As the Internet has gotten bigger over the years, it has become a bigger interest for governments all over the world. Presidents and kings have a Twitter account now, and all the plans for budget spending are put on government websites. But it also has become a bigger problem for people in power all over the world. The giant spread of the internet means that governments can’t hide anything from the people. People can have private conversation easily now, without having to meet in real life. However, it is beneficial for governments to know what people are discussing. This is what caused massive Internet surveillance. For a long time, the internet was one of the only places the governments didn’t have any surveillance. There are cameras on the streets, they can see what kind of packages you send, but they couldn’t see what you were doing on the Internet. That had to change, or so thought the people in power. Back in 1973, US president Richard Nixon had to resign after it became public that his administration bugged and wiretapped multiple political enemies. Today, the Obama administration is spying on the entire world; and they’re prosecuting the person who told everyone about it.
The US government alone has 20 (known) surveillance programs. They are not only domestic, but collect global data, beyond their jurisdiction. Perhaps the most well-known one of the bunch is PRISM. PRISM got massive global coverage when NSA employee Edward Snowden leaked dozens of files mainly to Glenn Greenwald, a journalist of The Guardian. The Guardian and Greenwald have been catalysts in carefully publishing information about the scale of the PRISM system. Snowden had to flee the USA and is now in Russia after receiving a temporary
The internet is being regulated more and more by governments, but is it a good thing?
There’s a global war going on right now. I’m not talking about Syria, I’m talking about the war on the Internet. As the Internet has gotten bigger over the years, it has become a bigger interest for governments all over the world. Presidents and kings have a Twitter account now, and all the plans for budget spending are put on government websites. But it also has become a bigger problem for people in power all over the world. The giant spread of the internet means that governments can’t hide anything from the people. People can have private conversation easily now, without having to meet in real life. However, it is beneficial for governments to know what people are discussing. This is what caused massive Internet surveillance. For a long time, the internet was one of the only places the governments didn’t have any surveillance. There are cameras on the streets, they can see what kind of packages you send, but they couldn’t see what you were doing on the Internet. That had to change, or so thought the people in power. Back in 1973, US president Richard Nixon had to resign after it became public that his administration bugged and wiretapped multiple political enemies. Today, the Obama administration is spying on the entire world; and they’re prosecuting the person who told everyone about it.
The US government alone has 20 (known) surveillance programs. They are not only domestic, but collect global data, beyond their jurisdiction. Perhaps the most well-known one of the bunch is PRISM. PRISM got massive global coverage when NSA employee Edward Snowden leaked dozens of files mainly to Glenn Greenwald, a journalist of The Guardian. The Guardian and Greenwald have been catalysts in carefully publishing information about the scale of the PRISM system. Snowden had to flee the USA and is now in Russia after receiving a temporary