Over the past few days, I've posted on some of the implications of Bill C-30, including the mandatory disclosure of subscriber information, the "voluntary" warrantless disclosure of e-mails and web surfing habits, and the stunning lack of detail on a wide range of issues including costs and surveillance capabilities.
While the bill includes some detail on surveillance capability requirements, perhaps the most dangerous provision is Section 14, which gives the government a stunning array of powers:
Given these powers, Section 14 essentially gives the government the power to override the limits and guidelines it establishes in the bill (it must pay the provider an amount the government decides is reasonable for doing so). If that wasn't enough, Section 14(4) goes even further. It provides the Minister may provide the telecommunications service provider with any equipment or other thing that the Minister considers the service provider needs to comply with an order made under this section.
What does this mean? In short, it gives the government the power to decide what specific surveillance equipment must be installed on private ISP and telecom networks by allowing it to simply take over the ISP or telecom network and install its own equipment. This is no small thing: it literally means that law enforcement has the power to ultimately determine not only surveillance capabilities but the surveillance equipment itself.
As Privacy International revealed late last year, there is a massive global surveillance industry that specializes in selling invasive surveillance technologies directly to governments and law enforcement.
Companies like Gamma Group offer "turnkey lawful interception projects," that includes SMS interception, speech identifying tools, and data retention, while Innova offers "solutions for the interception of any kind of protocols and IP-based communication, such as web browsing, e-mail and web-mails, social networks, peer to peer communication, chat and videochat."
Endace offers the "power to see all for Government" and Hacking Team provides a suite of tools for governmental interception. Last year, Wikileaks published a powerpoint presentation from Glimmerglass that shows how law enforcement can link email addresses, online chat, and social media activity to generate detailed profiles of individuals (pages 10-12).
There are dozens of these companies operating around the world, servicing steady demand from the Middle East and Asia. If Bill C-30 becomes law, the Canadian government will be positioned to require private ISPs to install these kinds of technologies directly within their networks.
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Claude Carignan: Who Created Bill C-30? The Liberals Would Rather Forget (They Did)
Hessie Jones: Canadian Businesses Still See Social Media as "Wild West"
Yoni Goldstein: Stop Pretending to Care About Privacy
As goes the USA goes Canada in these things. I am glad I don't live in the UK
For all those folks who think we can trust the police to respect the privacy of law abiding citizens: from
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/apparently-its-not-uncommon-for-cops-to-look-up-people-in-the-dmv-database-2012-2#ixzz1nADQ7xaR
For the most part Canadian Police Forces do recognise an individuals rights to privacy and have a good track record. Quite frankly it's not the police I worry about it's the Harper Government attempting to violate our privacy that worries me. They neither have the need nor the right to snoop on me or anyone else. They are politicians and civil servants not law enforcement. This Bill opens the door for security services similar to CSIS or some unknown entity to operate outside of the judicial system or an established mandate.
Trust no one.
We're allowing them to cut off debate or move it behind doors, fire or silence scientists, environmentalists, or academics, and ignore facts from specialists who are providing invaluable professional input on policies, etc. If anyone defends this as democratic, I suggest they buy a one way ticket to China.
US too is now keeping a copy of every single post posted and have been for years just not admitting to it.
*crickets*
Do the Liberals and NDP agree with this nonsense?
With this government in charge, it feels more like I'm living in the Soviet Union than Canada. I can hardly wait for the day when Stephen Harper is no longer our prime minister.
because that is what they, in essence, want to do.
Only they want to legalize it.
On top of that if it's "transparency" you seek, why the handle MarketScoop?
Why not your real name, location, job, list of all your bookmarks, contacts, affiliations.....
Are they paying you adequately for your advocacy?
If you want to peek, get a warrant from a willing judge - you know, those guys who are supposed to have discretion in making their sentencing - and warrant-issuing - decisions.