Prepare to be snooped on
There are many nations that are eavesdropping on the electronic communications of its citizens. The US government, which admitted large-scale data-mining operations in the “Prism” and “Boundless Informant” programmes, is simply not alone in this, nor is it the only nation paranoid about terrorist attacks and the need to stave them off by analysing electronic data.
It has been suspected for quite some time now that India’s National Technical Research Organisation, which is the electronic equivalent of the Research and Analysis Wing, our external intelligence agency, has been hacking emails routed through national servers. But the Indian national snooper, a fledgling operator in these times of sophisticated electronics that sees revolutionary tech by the day, has apparently failed to crack the data of US Internet service providers.
But even if the NTRO’s intentions are unquestionable, it is undeniable that much of NTRO’s operations are unauthorised. It would be better if the government lays down rules on data mining right now as we will certainly hear more of this global phenomenon, in which nations will put citizens increasingly under watch, electronically as well as physically, such as through more CCTVs installed in public areas.
As a society we must come to terms with the need to maintain vigilance in the face of terror that strikes us so often. The only way is to collect data and sift through it to find clues on which people or groups are trying to harm us and our nation. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
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