We’ve come out tops (or bottom depending on the way you look at it) in this latest poll, but for al the wrong reasons!!!
Taken from the latest 2007 International Privacy Ranking report from Privacy International the UK is confirmed again as being one of, if not the most endemic surveillance society in the world.
The reports puts the UK on the same level as other surveillance driven countries, China, Russia and the USA. Great, as a country supposed to be a champion of freedom!
The report paints a dark image of the way the UK continues down the road of to a total surveillance environment with further invasions of our privacy planned by our politicians via Identity Cards, Passenger Exit Records, Installation of yet more CCTV cameras to name just a few.
Other highlights from the report about the UK include:
- World leading surveillance schemes
- Lack of accountability and data breach disclosure law
- Commissioner has few powers
- Interception of communications is authorised by politician, evidence not used in court, and oversight is by commissioner who reports only once a year upon reviewing a subset of applications
- Hundreds of thousands of requests from government agencies to telecommunications providers for traffic data
- Data retention scheme took a significant step forward with the quiet changes based on EU law
- Plans are emerging regarding surveillance of communications networks for the protection of copyrighted content
- Despite data breaches, ‘joined-up government’ initiatives continue
- Identity scheme still planned to be the most invasive in the world, highly centralised and biometrics-driven; plan to issue all foreigners with cards in 2008 are continuing
- E-borders plans include increased data collection on travellers
Our freedom is slowly disappearing under this cloak of control to a point where we will soon be more monitored than even USSR citizens were during the Soviet era.
I wonder when we will see the State start to plant spy’s amongst us to track and report an individuals actions? It’s already started with hotlines for Benefit Fraud – yes we have to track criminals, but at what cost to the rest of us. “If you’ve nothing to hide, then you’ve nothing to fear”, is the cry that we’re then confronted with!
The report makes for very interesting reading and again shows how we, the great British masses are walking obliviously into a controlled society with little choice and eventually appearing to be just a number in one of the many governments databases, that is of course if they have not accidentally lost the data in the first place!
Beasley's Place 