The Expansion Of The Internet As A Primary Source For Communication

The increasing power and functionality of technology has increasingly invaded privacy and complicated security. Technology has made it possible for the government to

With the seemingly exponential propagation of inexpensive digital communications technologies over recent years, the general public is becoming more aware of the issues surrounding information privacy and government surveillance in the digital age. Every Tom, Dick, and Harry with a smart-phone has to be wary of how they use their private information for fear of that information being collected and used in a way contrary to their wishes. "Leaky" smartphone apps that transmit private information across the internet can be unethically used by government agencies. The issue of privacy is a balancing act; the public usually wants increased privacy and the government usually wants increased access.

Up until recently, agents of the government could generally file requests for court orders that, if approved, compel the companies to provide the requested information. Congress in the 1990s passed the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, to facilitate private-sector cooperation with law enforcement. This act required telecommunications companies to configure their systems in a way that would enable them to effectively respond to court orders. Five Simple Things Companies Should Do to Protect Their Computer Systems Apples’ Weakest Online Security Link: Their Encryption Code How to Get People to Take their policy Security More Seriously Encryption Uncoded: A Consumers’ Guide

The Internet involvement in the USA Patriot Act has also caused a negative impact on the personal

The Federal Communication Commission has a duty to promote internet security and a secure environment of communication networks, including the internet. Due to online transactions, people working from the internet and the digitalization of documents, sensitive personal information is frequently transmitted online. The order address this, “the Commission recently took enforcement action under section 222 (and section 201(b)) against two telecommunications companies that stored customers’ personal information, including social security numbers, on unprotected, unencrypted Internet servers publicly accessible using a basic Internet search” (FCC, 16). Also, the order encourages and demands broadband providers to maintain standard security protocols (FCC, 34). Furthermore, the order states that laws and regulations must be consistent, “to address the needs of emergency communications or law enforcement, public safety, or homeland or national security authorities” (FCC, 132). All of these points illustrate that security of networks, personal information and national security are top priorities of this order and that of the Federal Communication Commission. It is my belief that the commission does an effective job of address security

Since digital information data is now considered as the new gold mine, national security and privacy on the internet can be seen as alternate extremes relying upon the gathering of people’s digital footprint and data. Understanding the foundational structure of each discipline, can bring critical cognizance to both the sides of the issues. Many academic and research scholars find the definition of privacy shady, complex, and ambitious. As stated by Robert. C. Post “Privacy is a value so complex, so entangled in competing and contradictory

Since September 11th, due to the use of powerful cryptography to hide the planning the terrorist actions, America has dropped its views of privacy technology as a defense against an intrusive government.  Instead, it appears that all of American society is now ready to allow many infringements of civil liberties in order to create a false sense of security.

Ever since the American public was made aware of the United States government’s surveillance policies, it has been a hotly debated issue across the nation. In 2013, it was revealed that the NSA had, for some time, been collecting data on American citizens, in terms of everything from their Internet history to their phone records. When the story broke, it was a huge talking point, not only across the country, but also throughout the world. The man who introduced Americans to this idea was Edward Snowden.

Government surveillance in the past was not a big threat due to the limitations on technology; however, in the current day, it has become an immense power for the government. Taylor, author of a book on Electronic Surveillance supports, "A generation ago, when records were tucked away on paper in manila folders, there was some assurance that such information wouldn 't be spread everywhere. Now, however, our life stories are available at the push of a button" (Taylor 111). With more and more Americans logging into social media cites and using text-messaging devices, the more providers of metadata the government has. In her journal “The Virtuous Spy: Privacy as an Ethical Limit”, Anita L. Allen, an expert on privacy law, writes, “Contemporary technologies of data collection make secret, privacy invading surveillance easy and nearly irresistible. For every technology of confidential personal communication…there are one or more counter-technologies of eavesdropping” (Allen 1). Being in the middle of the Digital Age, we have to be much more careful of the kinds of information we put in our digital devices.

There is no doubt the privacy of our online activities and the integrity of our communications have been the biggest casualty of the NSA’s surveillance of our lives. Although ongoing revelations of government eavesdropping have had a profound impact on many different aspects in life. The NSA must balance out their interference with citizens lives because it’s undermining the government's leadership on internet safety, deteriorating internet security, and is causing economic losses to U.S. businesses due to decreasing customer trust.

And with 3 billion phone calls made and 150 billion emails sent to and from the United States every day, the collection of this personal data without specifying the limits to their searches is unclear and unjust. Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and Yahoo among many others have recently, under protection from the Obama administration, revealed details as to the statistics of government collection. Even our nation's biggest telecom companies, AT&T and Verizon, were obliged to work with the NSA, lately disclosing information on the filtering equipment they were necessitated to use. The storage of this data for prolonged periods of time also makes these companies and their users vulnerable to security breaches such as theft and attack by hackers; for example, the cyber-security firm Trustwave discovered a server on November 24, 2013 which contained the information of over 318,000 accounts on Facebook. This breach was evidently made possible by companies storing data for an unnecessary amount of time as well as a weakened encryption standard. Both were implemented and enforced by the NSA, and the forced retention this data for over five years not only renders this metadata vulnerable to theft or misuse, but has also not been proven to be notably valuable in thwarting terrorist attacks.

1. ”Internet companies have an intimidating amount of unauthorized data and influence over the citizenry.”

To begin, government spying creates potential risks to public trust, personal privacy, and civil liberty, which is why dometic programs that allows bulk data to be stored should be put to an end. With the Patriot coming to an end, the senate voted to end NSA’s bulk data collection programs to end on may 13. “[T]he House overwhelmingly passed the USA Freedom Act by a vote of 338-88 . The bill would take the storage of bulk telephony metadata away from the government and would instead rely on the telecom

Perhaps one of the greatest inventions of out time is the Internet. Without a doubt, the net has had a profound effect on almost every aspect of our lives. The formation of the Internet has changed the way we do business, communicate, entertain, retrieve information, and even educate ourselves. Nevertheless, the Internet might have never materialized if it had not been for some innovated thinkers from the Advanced Research Project Agency, who created "ARPANET." In collaboration with several educational and research institutions, the agency created the packet-switching technologies that form the basis of the Internet today.

There are dangers of online communication such as social networks where users can lie about who they are [4]“Megan thought she was being abused by 16-year-old Josh Evans, she was actually talking to Lori Drew, the 49-year-old mother of one of her former friends who, it is alleged, had set up a fake profile to taunt Megan.” in social networking sites it is very easy for people to