Not Quake ..But read on and worry!

Carnate

How personal is your personal computer? Lots of Internet users choose to encrypt the information stored on their computers. It's a natural defensive response to the Internet, where private information is a valuable commodity - most Web browsers do it routinely when processing retail transactions, for
example. But if a new proposal by the Justice
Department passes, the government will have the power to secretly break into homes and disable security software on private computers, allowing them to search and monitor those computers at will.


The proposed law is called -- a little paradoxically --the Cyberspace Electronic Security Act, and it promises to be the next battleground for the opposing forces of personal privacy and national security. Here's how it would work: investigators
would obtain a search warrant from a judge; the warrant would then be "sealed," meaning that the person whose premises were being searched wouldn't know about it. Investigators could the secretly enter that person's home or workplace and do whatever it took to circumvent the security on the
computers there, including swiping passwords and installing software that would disable encryption. If they did their jobs well, no one would know they'd even been there.

Now That Is Scary!!

Comments....anyone

-=Raven=-

This is only in America I take it?

Suppose everyone has seen Enemy of the State. Good film , but the freaky thing about it, is that its all true and happening in the world.
This is a little different , and less extreme , but if this law did come to pass (which it could very easily) it wouldn't be the best , obviously. And it would have the knock on effect of laws such as this coming to pass over here too.

But actually , I wonder........this type of thing has to be going on anyway. If this comes to pass , it'll just make it official.

The way things are going these days, who knows whats next.How personal is your personal computer?

- more like How personal is your personal life. -

Hobbes

yea it's only in the States. In Europe some months back your EU MP's passed a law that basically said that ISP's have to allow the ability to monitor all traffic on people. Notice how they kept that one quiet.

Shinji

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[This message has been edited by Shinji (edited 27-08-99).]

Shinji

I've found myself using PGP more and more these days... The net is being monitored a lot more than people will admit, or believe.

Dr_Teeth

The UK hasn't gone down the same route as the US in this case - they just jail you if you refuse to give them the decryption keys to any of your data..

Teeth.