“Innocent data does not exist, it is only a matter of the right time and the wrong hands to turn it into a weapon”
Monitoring and following the citizens of a nation has always been essential to its governance. In an effort to protect their privacy, regular people have tried to establish limits on what can be watched and spied on. This line has been constantly moving, especially as technology has advanced and made it possible to delve deeper into the lives of regular people and their private information. A further strong force to be considered is business, which has attempted to read consumer behavior in its quest for sacrosanct profit. History demonstrates that governments and businesses frequently collaborated on common goals. bypassing laws meant to shield citizens from irrational interference with their lives.
Governments and businesses are increasingly blending together. This is a fact that is occurring all over the world, not a prediction. Despite the widening gap between the majority of people and the small number of people who own almost everything, the government will use any means at its disposal to maintain the status quo. Despite all the negative things we see, hear, and read, there will always be those in governments and corporations who disagree with particular actions or policies. By doing everything within their power to guide the ship toward a better future, we fervently hope that they will be able to effect change from within. One cannot point to an entire organization, such as a government or business, and claim that everyone working there is out to rule the rest of society in the name of almighty profit.
Now, a significant portion of people and objects in the world are connected to this thing called the Internet, making the world a large-scale digital community. Being able to connect with anyone on the Internet, no matter where they are, is one way it improves our quality of life. Don’t forget, though, that if you can get in touch with someone, others can do the same and delve into your life if they can get in touch with you quickly. When it first came out, security concerns weren’t on the developers’ mind maps; instead, it was intended to be a tool for researcher collaboration. We retrofit any security measures we create today in an effort to close the gaps. Most contemporary devices, commonly referred to as the net, have some connection to the internet. It’s in your house, office, outside “watching” you or even on your body as a wearable. The development of intelligent mobile technology, which poses a high risk whether you are at home or out jogging in the park, is more concerning.
The reason why those in authority and those engaged in the monitoring and tracking industries will try to seize more access and power is indicated by a number of social-political trends. While reading this, take a look around you to understand that there are actually more threats to people than there were before. A few man-made events and technological advancements will serve as justification for the increased authority to closely monitor your lives. Life and limb are now at risk in addition to privacy. We will take a look at several current and upcoming developments which impact the personal world of the “commoner”. There will be strong, constant pressure to provide personal information. The ability to set boundaries that governments, corporations, and everyone else must abide by through actual laws is a crucial component of the people’s defense. You will need to be aware of new developments and their repercussions, and appropriate laws will need to be enacted. The price of maintaining freedom, as someone once said, is eternal vigil. You do not want to live in an Orwellian world where “big brother” watches your every move! Your privacy must be protected to the fullest extent possible.
The best course of action does not involve assuming that everyone poses a threat and then justifying complete societal surveillance and control. It opens a massive can of worms, which is a surefire way to get to the kind of society we don’t want. One reason is human nature, which history has repeatedly shown to be not good but rather bad. Governments come and go, just like the rest of the world, which is another factor. The next dark era in human history will be a digital catastrophe because the forces of evil now have access to all the data that has been collected, not if, but when. There is no such thing as innocent data; all it takes is the wrong hands and the right moment for it to become a weapon.
Automated Multi Source Profiling
Whether you like it or not, automated multi-source profiling is now a part of daily life. Targets that need to be watched for a particular reason are narrowed down using this profiling. No matter the reason, many people will end up in databases where they have no business being there because the method is flawed. The process of automatically classifying people by accumulating data from as many sources as possible is fraught with peril. Now that humongous amounts of data can be easily analyzed and computer technology provides the tools to manage this “big data” there will be increasing pressure to combine databases from many sources. Information gathered from agencies of the government, for-profit businesses, and nonprofit organizations adds to the picture of your life. It will be simple to gather, combine, and manage the data about an individual with the technologies that are currently available. That everything is gathered without cause, whether it’s innocent or not, either for financial gain or just because it’s possible.
Biometric Data Sharing
Biometric information is used to authentically identify people, especially when other types of data are also used. For instance, many nations now routinely include fingerprint information on passports, but iris scan and face recognition data are also beginning to be used. The US biometric database is now used by the Canadian government in addition to their own to assess a person’s suitability for entry into Canada. Sadly, third party organizations and the public now use biometric data for a variety of purposes. Consider finding someone at particular locations across the nation and storing that information for use at a later time. All citizens within borders can be remotely identified by face recognition cameras without cause, even though this no longer targets foreign travelers. Biometric data has been charged by many experts with producing a high number of false positives. Your travel plans may be canceled or worsened if you are instantly classified as an undesirable person. Keep in mind that nations, businesses, and others are connecting more and more of their databases to create a massive global database to which many people have access. some with questionable motives.
Everyone, Everywhere, Anytime
Think about the recent barrage of information about NSA surveillance. Although some people did not find this surprising, others, who frequently derided concerned citizens as tinfoil crazies, find the numerous revelations about the pervasive mass surveillance embarrassing. They have been accused of spying on individuals and political parties outside of their own country in addition to keeping an eye on citizens at home. These activities have undoubtedly been made possible by the wide range of internet technologies that are available and the Internet’s global reach. It is evidence that even intelligence agencies struggle to protect their operations and data from the human factor that some well-known whistle-blowers were able to access the data collected by the NSA. Of course, it’s not just the NSA; pretty much any organization with a similar mandate in another nation does the same. They work together or on their own when it is possible. Many of their operations are not reported to their own governments or are only limited to a small group of people who are not permitted to say much. One of the causes is the ability of public figures to maintain that there is nothing to worry about and that everyday life goes on. Additionally, traditional intelligence collection changed to economic intelligence to support the domestic economy. Business intelligence is what it is known as in the commercial world, but when it comes to the level of secret agencies, it goes beyond what is understood. Everyone is a target; simply by reading this article, you are probably already being watched and cataloged in some database. Sorry to have to break it to you.
Hardware Bigger Target
The use of encryption software to secure data rather than leaving it in the open is a trend that is slowly making its way to the general public. This applies to both exchanging data and storing it locally on computers, including tablets, phones, desktops, and servers. Many businesses are now being forced to start implementing encryption and privacy rules as a result of the general public’s awakening. This is heartening but insufficient, especially since the dominant corporations will always find a way to violate that trust while also receiving protection from their allies in the government. Hardware is the new priority target for data interception, according to recently leaked information. With or without the knowledge of the manufacturers, not only criminals but also governments are hacking products to spy on the consumer. It is disregarded that they amass an enormous amount of data that has nothing to do with the actual target they are pursuing. Everything is saved for a later date. With the advent of the Internet of Things, or IoT, proper security implementation is now more crucial than ever. It is still not a guarantee, however, as other incidents demonstrate how dubious agencies persuade businesses to weaken their product security in order to gain easy access. Open-source hardware and software is advancing thanks to the cooperation of worldwide communities of people and is an alternative to “blackboxes”. People will still be able to get data from A to B through X and Tor-like networks when more decentralization of encrypted data flows is combined with it. Even if this progress is undesirable, it cannot be stopped without obliterating the internet as we know it and creating a global surveillance state. It is unacceptable to use the fact that crime exists in all its manifestations as justification for sacrificing liberty, progress, and alternatives. Maybe it would only help a select group of people who need to instill fear in order to keep people in line and work for them.
Increase of Cyber Strikes, Disinformation & Infiltration
It seems to be getting normal to attack first and investigate later as that is “always” the best defense against those pesky enemies of the state; pre-emptive cyber strikes against other countries are increasing while disinformation is being spread through “bought” news media outlets. We are one step closer to creating perfect Orwellian societies when we add infiltration of businesses and other entities. Since cyber attacks are less obvious to the general public, even if they are reported, they do not seem important enough to be questioned or given much thought. Another manifestation of the government complex is the deliberate misinformation campaigns launched by some media outlets. What is achieved besides escalating a potential conflict through preemptive strikes, sabotaging the news media with shady agendas, and fomenting distrust in society through increased infiltration, one might ask? By understanding the why and who, society can decide whether or not this is the world we want to live in. If not, changes may need to be made.
More Secret Courts
Here, we use the secret U.S. courts as an example, though it should be noted that other nations also use similar systems for particular purposes. Creating a secret court is permitted by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, of 1978. Today, it’s thought of as being nearly identical to a supreme court. The government alone is arguing these wholly one-sided cases. Although there is a review procedure to challenge FISA court rulings, it is rarely used. There hasn’t been a single appeal to the Supreme Court. This is the court that issues warrants for (mass)surveillance, which includes tapping people’s phones. 1800 of these warrants were issued in just 2013 alone. The official narrative is to halt terrorism and protect people, which is a logical goal in and of itself. The key issue is that no longer are the participants in this process held accountable. There will undoubtedly be more of these warrants issued, and certain FISA judges are likely to be willing to do so. The authorizations frequently permit telecom operators to provide the NSA and other agencies with enormous amounts of data. The court frequently tackles constitutional validity issues in its decisions and issues interpretations that are never subjected to public review. This is specifically true of nations that frequently brag about their democracy while criticizing others for not having it. Many of the developed countries, particularly the ones growing into the “developed” club, certainly have such secret courts. In addition to legality, the problematic aspect of this is how these data are used to increase overall control and economic espionage. Each year that goes by, it seems as though the old mission of serving and protecting the people is becoming less significant.
More Threat Branding
It is no secret that many organizations are scrutinized by governmental bodies and even businesses that are attempting to take over some of that work. As more and more people get “connected”, like on the People who want to keep an eye on and track them can see their activities online. How or on what basis any entity is dubbed a “potential threat” is often a subjective thing. There will be a greater risk of these decision-makers being labeled as a potentially disruptive influence by someone if there aren’t strict checks and balances in place. With today’s cutting-edge technologies, it is simple to be identified as a threat, but nearly impossible to stop it or even be aware that such an entry exists in a database. More organizations will be classified as potential threats as the government complex acquires more power. By now everyone who critically followed worldwide developments can predict that a “threat” could be based on economic motivation or perhaps asking the “wrong” questions, even as a journalist.
Weaponized Urban Drones
Drone deliveries of products purchased by customers from Amazon have been announced. That might or might not come to pass, but it amply proves that this commercial juggernaut believes it is doable. Today, it is possible to build drones with the ability to fly to specific locations. Prior to the beginning of commercial projects, authorities in various nations must finalize laws governing the use of drones in urban airspace. It is obvious that the various government agencies are already using more flying drones in urban areas for surveillance and monitoring purposes. The arming of drones with lethal and non-lethal weapons for use against civilians is a worrying development in addition to its contribution to mass surveillance. These drones are more compact and have more features appropriate for an urban environment rather than the heavily armed drones used in military operations. A possible first step toward robocops with the same authority as real police officers in the future. As of this writing, several companies are already selling armed drones for crowd control that can fire rubber bullets, pepper spray, blinding lasers, piercing audio, and other weapons. When connected to some mainframe, a drone with high-definition cameras and other light spectrum modes can quickly identify targets. Numerous experts come to the conclusion that militarizing police forces and enhancing their capabilities with drones is a growing trend. Police drones may soon be able to fire missiles and other projectiles at crowds nearby, in your backyard rather than some far-off country, if they are in their mission area.
World Events Impact Liberties
With every negative event accelerating some unpopular agendas, the world of today is rapidly changing. Not that change is always bad, but in this case we concentrate on how it affects liberties and how some very powerful groups profit from it. We do the exact opposite of what we should not do after every significant event, such as 9/11, wars in nations like Afghanistan and Iraq, and regional bloody revolutions with or without foreign influence. We give up the liberties we fought so hard for in the past in order to obtain a false sense of security. Such erroneous reasoning has contributed to increased surveillance, tracking, restriction of citizens’ freedoms, and growth in the authority of the government for its own purposes. Instead of fighting the symptoms as usual, we should seek out the underlying reasons why a conflict or event occurred in the first place and learn from them. Nothing will change your mind until it is too late if you continue to believe there is no reason to sound the alarm despite everything that has occurred so far and been leaked to the public. Could be too late now.
The Rise Of Crypto Currencies
The last few years have seen the emergence of numerous crypto currencies. The most well-known of these is Bitcoin, and as of 2014, there were 275 different types of crypto currencies. Their growing popularity is one obvious trend that is simple to see. Despite the fact that it is a rough ride due to all the speculators involved, the market capitalization is a good indicator of this. Litecoin is currently in third place with a market cap of $96 million, followed by Ripple ($774 million) and Bitcoin ($4.3 billion). More people are beginning to hedge their bets on the national currencies and use these crypto currencies, which are not controlled by any government or entity, as economic and political problems affect various countries around the world. It is yet another illustration of how people push back by beginning to create and offer alternatives to a system that no longer serves them.
Cash Limits & Debt Increasing
Governments in the majority of developed nations float today on credit as an increasing number of people reach their credit limits and begin to live to pay the recurring credit repayments. The freedom of the person to truly exercise his or her free will is reduced as the burden increases. The person involved’s main priority will be to continue working at his or her current position, not stir up any trouble, and put in the necessary effort on a daily basis to make sure the debt is repaid. Putting heavier burdens on everyone’s shoulders is one very effective control strategy. It is crucial for those in positions of authority to restrict trading practices that are difficult to monitor, tax, and regulate in order to maintain that control. It is absolutely forbidden for people to deal with each other directly instead of going through a middleman in order to alter the system from the inside out.
Worldwide Increase of Conflicts
The Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research (HIIK) reported that there were about 400 conflicts going on in the world as of the end of 2013. At least 20 of these fall under the heading of war. Since 2015, there has been an alarming increase in conflict zones, and elements of these conflicts are now beginning to permeate many people’s daily lives in peaceful communities. If it makes people more aware of reality and helps them understand why these things occur, rather than viewing them as random symptoms, then that could be good or bad. The following is a limited list, in no particular order, of major ongoing conflicts which keeps growing:
– In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the army of the governing government is engaged in combat with the M23 rebel group, tensions between Christians and Muslims are rising.
– In Mali, where French-led forces intervened, Islamist rebels are actively trying to take control of the nation.
– The conflict pits Russia-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine against Ukraine, which is supported by the US and EU.
– Attacks on moderate Muslims and Christians continue in Nigeria as part of the terrorist group Boko Haram’s efforts to impose Sharia law.
– conflict in Sudan between groups of mixed ethnicity and government forces.
– the protracted and bloody conflict between Israel and Palestine, for which there is no apparent end in sight.
– Afghanistan is still a country in conflict with the Taliban, with government forces primarily supported by the US.
– unstable Pakistani-Afghanistan border and an increase in drone attacks against extremist organizations.
– Blackmail, human trafficking, drug cartel smuggling, and drug wars continue to be rife in Mexico.
– Syria’s civil war is still raging, and the terrorist organization IS has taken control of a sizeable portion of the country, including a portion of Iraq.
– Iraq, which is battling IS, is supported by a global alliance made up of the US, Arab nations, Iran, and the EU. The prevalence of religious violence between Shiites and Sunnis is also rising.
– where the Moro people’s fight for independence is still ongoing is the Philippines.
– The conflict between the government forces and the rebel Al-Shabaab group is still causing problems in Somalia. It is transferring some of its effects to neighboring nations.
– The 2010 birth of South Sudan as a new nation. There are two active wars. One of the conflicts is between the forces of the ex-vice president and the president. The presidential force is also actively involved in aiding two Sudanese provinces that are fighting for autonomy.
– There are sporadic clashes between North and South Korea, and the two countries are still technically at war.
– In Yemen, terrorist organizations that use the country as a base of operations coexist with rebel groups fighting the central government.
Despite the fact that the majority of the aforementioned conflict zones have a long history of violence, it is expected to see new conflict in areas or nations where it is not currently anticipated. Throughout history, economic inequalities have frequently been the root of conflicts. Now that the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) break into the “developed” countries club one must anticipate serious friction over market, influence, resources and territory. Internal conflicts within nations can have a variety of causes, but they frequently involve a mix of the following: a weak economy, corruption, a police state, religious tensions, outside influence, oppression, unpopular politics, a stark disparity between the rich and the poor, and racial inequality. As you might imagine, it’s just a new flavor and color of the same old human story.
Corporate Influence on the Internet & ICANN
The digital world has undergone significant changes that show how major corporations are becoming more dominant online. On policies, joint projects, and data sharing, they are closely collaborating with a number of governments. Even though they are aware that some of what they are doing is against the law or at the very least unethical, the majority voluntarily cooperate. But holy profit, power and status is something shared by both parties giving it the name “the govporation”. Before we continue it is important to understand what ICANN is, taken from the ICANN website a short introduction:
” You must enter an address—a name or a number—into your computer to contact someone else on the Internet. In order for computers to find one another, that address must be distinct. These distinct identifiers are coordinated globally by ICANN. We wouldn’t have a single, worldwide Internet without that coordination. In 1998, ICANN was established. It is a non-profit collaboration of individuals from around the globe committed to maintaining the stability, security, and interoperability of the Internet. It encourages competition and establishes guidelines for the Internet’s distinctive identifiers. The Internet’s content is not governed by ICANN. It has no control over Internet access and is unable to stop spam. It does, however, have a significant impact on the growth and development of the Internet through its coordination role of the naming system. “
It is even more concerning for the future of the internet as it currently exists that efforts are being made to move ICANN away from governmental oversight and into a more corporate environment. Of course, it is currently selecting the lesser of two evils in the hopes of discovering a better one. We have seen what happens when the so called “free market” takes over, often people will not benefit from this but again those who can afford it in wealth and power will applaud it. It is too much for this article to discuss the limits of “free market” by those who control it but rest assured we will do so in a new article. Massive corporations like Facebook, Google, Amazon, and others want to bring internet access to impoverished areas of the world where it is currently unavailable or difficult to do so. Of-course it is not just because it makes their heart warm but they wish to also decide what people pay, see, do and get on “their” version of the internet. similar to what the current lobby of corporate groups wants for the internet. This is another reason why some nations went ahead and passed legislation to restore net neutrality, even though others only did so after being persuaded to do so by the corporate lobby. Therefore, if at all possible, you ought to look into how this is set up in your own nation.
Few more words
Like some people, we are concerned that the hidden agendas being advanced by for-profit corporations, politicians, and other entities will lead to a nightmare situation from which there is no way out. Perhaps after watching a dystopian film or television program where unbelievable things occur, you are now witnessing the same thing in real life. Maybe we need to look further back in time, like how we got here after the Second World War. a generation of people who, at the time, had firsthand knowledge of what can happen when mental instability is allowed to spread among a small number of people on all sides. Ever ponder why a new foe is suddenly portrayed by politicians, the media, etc. after an old one has vanished? Perhaps we should begin looking into what is causing all of these enemies to appear? If something is truly wrong, we might then realize it. Instead of focusing on the trivial, how about asking ourselves what kind of world we want to live in? Why are you reading these words, whoever you are, wherever you are, and whoever you serve?