THE Home Office has quietly adopted a new plan to allow police across Britain routinely to hack into people’s personal computers without a warrant.
The move, which follows a decision by the European Union’s council of ministers in Brussels, has angered civil liberties groups and opposition MPs. They described it as a sinister extension of the surveillance state which drives “a coach and horses” through privacy laws.
The hacking is known as “remote searching”. It allows police or MI5 officers who may be hundreds of miles away to examine covertly the hard drive of someone’s PC at his home, office or hotel room.
Under the Brussels edict, police across the EU have been given the green light to expand the implementation of a rarely used power involving warrantless intrusive surveillance of private property. The strategy will allow French, German and other EU forces to ask British officers to hack into someone’s UK computer and pass over any material gleaned.
Excuse me, but this just plain sucks!
The government is already in our computers. But the police? No thanks! I would raise some serious sand about this if I were British. All it takes is some psycho cop who has a vendetta and he could easily plant something on your computer, then without a warrant, get in and ‘find’ the evidence. Not good. Steps should be taken to repeal that, and soon.
Pagan said, “George Orwell was an optimist.”
Agreed.
This sanctioned power is J Edgar Hoover’s wetdream.
#31 has one of the best points about this matter. coming from a town notorious for police corruption. having them able to screw around in peoples computers is not a good idea…
but then again maybe so, instead of the police killing people they could just put some kiddie porn on their computer and at least they wouldn’t be dead right? just wasting away in prison.
Editor==Yes, please remove posts #20 and #22 from bobbo.
# 4 SnotLikeBlasterpoop said:
“Since we’re following the EU’s lead, expect to see this in the US by 2010 at the latest.”
Sure you didn’t get your digits mixed up, as in “2001 at the latest”?
#1 Cursor;
Excellent suggestion! I haven’t heard about Truecrypt.
Now I can store all my secret Atomic Bomb Biological Terrorist Weapons Of Mass Destruction Jihad Dirty Bomb files on my computer with total and complete tranquility!
(Waiting to see how long before my friends from the FBI knock on my door…)
(Uh, oh…)
Brussels edict? Blimey!
# 4 SnotLikeBlasterpoop said,
Since we’re following the EU’s lead, expect to see this in the US by 2010 at the latest.
SnotLikeBlasterpoop you are very naive indeed if you don’t think this is not happening now in the U.S. Police now routinely use key logging programs like “RemoteSpy”, a keylogging spyware program.
Also NSA is supposedly dependent upon passive intercept, according to the Agency lore when I worked as a contractor for the “customer” at Fort Mead. It is also well-known that CIA Director John Deutch in 1996 ordered a major redirection in NSA budget to foster more research into active attacks on target
computer and communication systems.
NSA, CIA, FBI, DoD, … all can do what they want, who is there to stop them; you, America? Be real, grow up! Real America is dead, all that survives now is a growing police state.