Is privacy dead?

We can hope that consequences of intelligence agencies running amok will motivate them to dial back their operations


Sabina Khan February 26, 2015
The writer has a Master’s degree in conflict-resolution from the Monterey Institute of International Studies in California and blogs at http://coffeeshopdiplomat.wordpress.com

“I am not a crook.” This infamous statement was broadcast over live television by US President Richard Nixon during the 1970s when he was suspected to be involved in spying on rival party campaign headquarters. Ironically, it was his next sentence, “I earned everything I got” that proved more truthful since he was forced to resign when White House audiotapes revealed his involvement in a cover-up. The topic of ‘national security’ was used multiple times to hinder the investigation into Nixon’s involvement.

If Nixon’s people were willing to plant physical bugs in order to gain political advantages, it’s reckless to assume that instant access to global data today won’t be exploited. US administrations, along with their Five Eyes partners, have taken it upon themselves to intrude deeper into the personal lives of their citizens along with perceived threats around the world.

This month, the Russian-based Kaspersky lab has exposed new complex cyberespionage tactics conducted by the West. The Kaspersky report implied that the NSA hides spyware deep within hard drives produced by popular manufacturers such as Toshiba, Seagate, etc., allowing them to spy on the world’s computers. Some of the countries that are highly targeted include Iran, Pakistan and Russia, due to their nuclear programmes. The report mentioned that the techniques used were similar to those of Stuxnet, a cyberweapon that was used to attack Iran’s nuclear programme. The Stuxnet worm was a joint effort between Israel and the US.

US-based tech firms have suffered immediate drops in business since the leaks began in 2013. When a government has possession of a large amount of data, it poses a threat to progress as well. The impressive civil rights advancements over the last century would have faced much stronger resistance from governments had they been armed with the tools that the present-day powers have amassed. Changing the status quo will prove difficult when they can read your messages and track every movement.

Regarding the time-tested ‘national security’ justification, the NSA only claims 54 instances which have contributed to the US government’s understanding of terrorism activities. Ensuring that your nation is protected from attacks is an understandable responsibility. However, the NSA appears to be going above and beyond that duty. The agency targeted a Brazilian oil company, Chinese universities and the World Bank. Those headlines were bold, but are damaging when coupled with the discovery of a 2009 US intelligence report, which discusses stealing proprietary information from foreign targets to evaluate usefulness for the US industry. The recently retired NSA head is selling his services for a rumoured amount of $1 million per month.

The combined negative effect that this news is having on the US tech industry, media and personal sense of freedom is significant. Nearly two years have passed since Edward Snowden began leaking details of NSA capabilities and leaders have yet to respond with any meaningful reforms. We can hope that the consequences of intelligence agencies running amok will motivate them to dial back their operations, but there are no signs of that thus far. For now, we can only be thankful that the details of their deceit are finally available and open to public scrutiny.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 27th,  2015.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.

COMMENTS (2)

Rex Minor | 9 years ago | Reply As usual Miss Khan writes a brilliant script, reminding the readers about tthe meaning of 'liberty and Freedom' which we so revere and take it for granted, became the victim of todays America. It has lost the Americans the loyalty of European allies, most notable being the Federal Republic of Germany whose 80 million citizens though protected by the German privacy law, were scanned ruthlessly and unashamedly, including their mobile phone communications including that of the Chancellor for over a decade with the justification by secretary Kerry, " we wanted to know what the German leadership thinks"? This trust deficit will never be replaced with todays America and Mr Obama knows of it since his CIA operator was politely declared as person non grata, and the proposed "free trade agreement" was subjected to further scrutiny from tha angle of Industrial espianog.. Rex Minor
John B | 9 years ago | Reply In today's interconnected world, privacy is dead. People are more willing to display their private information, thoughts and pictures in twitter, FB, and so on. If those information are good for public, why are they not so for the government. Unless the government comes into my home into my personal property, without warrant, I have no expectation of privacy, like my comment on this article, once I go into public space! That is the definition of privacy. NSA is no more different than ISI. Except, NSA has congressional oversight. Those governments who have the technological know how always snoop on others and it is in the US interest to keep the technology secure from cyber stealing and sabotage. The individuals in the US should be more worried about the snooping cookies and spam viruses. They cost the individual lot of money to get rid of them!
Replying to X

Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.

For more information, please see our Comments FAQ