So you think the surveillance industry in the USA is bad? Okay, it is, but we got nothing on the UK. For example, they’re making government workers, including school teachers, wear body cameras. There might be hope. UK Surveillance fail: UK citizens fight back.
So there a privacy rights group they call Liberty’s. Liberty’s has been fighting the Investigatory Powers Act since 2016. This law tells IT service companies and others in IT support to hold all activity logs for a year. Because now, the government can require this info for any and all British citizens. They can also ask it for any reason, anytime, on a whim. Some say this is a national security measure.
However, Liberty’s and others don’t buy it. First of all, they argue the government can use this for any crime, not just violent and major ones. Also, privacy groups say even a corporation can get these activity logs, then use them against anybody. For instance, they can use this to track and hound somebody who is a little late on a bill. The UK High Court (similar to our US Supreme Court) agreed. They said some parts of the Investigatory Powers Act are unlawful. They have until November 1, 2018 to change some of most evasive parts of this law.
I think it’s important to make clear what activity logs are. They are our texts, emails, social media posts and comments, etc. These are things people do all day every day, so much we take it for granted. But they want to hold all of that for a year? And for what? Just in case you do something wrong, so they can hold it against you? That’s not right. So kudos to this UK surveillance fail, and kudos to Liberty’s and other UK citizens for fighting back. But what does this have to do with the USA? Have you not been paying attention over the last five years?