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If proposals are accepted spooks could spy on Brits' communications without needing Home Office approval
The UK government is considering implementing a database that can monitor and log the internet browsing habits, emails and phone calls of every Briton, according to a report in the Sunday Times.
If the proposal is implemented, the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) would be in charge of handling the project, which is expected to cost around £12bn.
The reported aim would be to counter terrorism and organised crime. Currently MI5 has to apply to the Home Secretary for warrants to intercept specific email and website traffic.
If the new plan is adopted it will allow GCHQ to monitor internet and mobile phone networks live. If the database is set up, this means it could also work in tandem with the US-based Echelon project as a ‘tool’ against terrorism and organised crime.
However, implementation would mean that billions of bits of data would have to be monitored; in the UK alone it is estimated that this year some 60 billion text messages and 1.2 trillion emails were sent.
However, the proposal is causing alarm. Shadow Home Secretary, Dominic Grieve, said: "If the suggestion that is being reported is correct it would mark a substantial shift in the powers of the state to obtain information on individuals.
"Given the Government's poor record on protecting data and seeing how significant an increase in power this would be, we need to have a national debate and the Government would have to justify its need."
Richard Thomas, the Information Commissioner, has also previously warned that the UK is "sleep walking" into a surveillance society.
The Home Office said no decision had been taken but The Sunday Times said that more details will be unveiled next month during the Queen's Speech after ministers have agreed to the project in principle.
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This is Bih Bro,taking over the show
this country is becoming the epitomy of a big brother state. between cctv, internet,email, txt and call monitoring, not to mention being able to track mobile signals, we wont be able to fart without the government knowing. And on top of this, we dont even get a say if we want this to happen. and it will cost £12bn??!! surely this money would be better spent improving whatever security infastructure they apparently have in place, they can't even protect the inormation they hold at present. Idiots
Posted by KingFabstar, 06 Oct 2008
Data snooping
When they have got all this data can they put it on a disk and lose it in the post as soon as possible, so that we can sue them, and get rid of them and their stooopid ideas?
Posted by Moooo, 06 Oct 2008
How big will this be?
Mostly I feel this is a bad idea, we have less privacy every day. This super database was reported in our local paper today, the report said how many billions of emails are sent each month, this "database" will be huge. How are the government going to check that many emails for suspicious activity? If someone sends me an email joke about Bin Laden (as they do sometimes) will that get me listed as some kind of terrorist? The only possible good thing I can think of is that the senders of spam could be found by this "database".
Posted by BlackKnight_UK, 07 Oct 2008
Bad Idea
To be honest, I know MI5 mean by doing good but at this large scale of trying to record phone calls, view emails and texts. Are they aware of how much man & computer power that would be needed to be done. They just have no idea. Let alone the cost of the database. Don't we get our privacy any more?
Posted by Bridget Kelly O'Sheehan, 07 Oct 2008
...
what a full-on load of sh*t! so what else does the uk gov want to know about me? what time i get up in the night for a p*ss? this is far far too much! like stated.. what "keyword(s)" will get you on the terrorist list? how long will it take for them to lose it? half the collected data will have been lost in a public place b4 the database is "officially" open lol. the amount of time and money wasted by the gov spying on people is mind boggling... poverty, lack of jobs, health system, education, child care.....(the list goes on) needs improving. invest there not on pointless spying. now i'll be back later, gotta find that spycams i'm sure they got planted in my house ...
Posted by emu, 07 Oct 2008