Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Governmental control of the internet

The 'Cybersecurity Act of 2009' may sound like a good idea up front, but in reality it gives the government control of "all networks considered part of the nation's critical infrastructure" - a.k.a. the Internet

"The government also would have access to digital data from a vast array of industries including banking, telecommunications and energy."
"It's really broad, and there are plenty of laws right now designed to prevent the government getting access to that kind of data. It's the same stuff we've been fighting on the warrantless wiretapping."

The bill would allow the government to create a detailed set of standards for cybersecurity, as well as take over the process of certifying IT technicians. But many in the technology sector say the government is simply ill-equipped to get involved at the technical level, said Franck Journoud, a policy analyst with the Business Software Alliance.

"Simply put, who has the expertise?" he said. "It's the industry, not the government. We have a responsibility to increase and improve security. That responsibility cannot be captured in a government standard."

Everything about this just screams bad idea...

Thanks to James Osborne for the article - http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/04/21/proposed-heavy-restrictions-internet-freedoms/

No comments:

Post a Comment