UK government will spy on every call and e-mail

// added October 05, 2008 // 58 comments //
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toshiba

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http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article4882600.ece

Ministers are considering spending up to £12 billion on a database to monitor and store the internet browsing habits, e-mail and telephone records of everyone in Britain. GCHQ, the government’s eavesdropping centre, has already been given up to £1 billion to finance the first stage of the project.

Hundreds of clandestine probes will be installed to monitor customers live on two of the country’s biggest internet and mobile phone providers - thought to be BT and Vodafone. BT has nearly 5m internet customers.

Ministers are braced for a backlash similar to the one caused by their ID cards programme. Dominic Grieve, the shadow home secretary, said: “Any suggestion of the government using existing powers to intercept communications data without public discussion is going to sound extremely sinister.”

MI5 currently conducts limited e-mail and website intercepts which are approved under specific warrants by the home secretary.

Further details of the new plan will be unveiled next month in the Queen’s speech.

The Home Office stressed no formal decision had been taken but sources said officials had made clear that ministers had agreed “in principle” to the programme.

Officials claim live monitoring is necessary to fight terrorism and crime. However, critics question whether such a vast system can be kept secure. A total of 57 billion text messages were sent in the UK last year - 1,800 every second.
  1. groups:
    Tech,   News and Politics,   Current News US,   Current News UK,   1 more
  2. tags:
    News and Politics,  Tech,  UK,  Internet,  6 more

58 comments // UK government will spy on every call and e-mail

  • Lajon53
  • patsarts
  • HeroMAY
  • teto007
  • rwylie
    • 0
      rwylie  

    • This is the kind of thing that a constitution would be useful to protect against. This is just wrong, no matter any good it would do, it just shouldn't be done.

    • 1 year ago
  • TrevTar
  • HUMAN_CRACK
    • 0
      HUMAN_CRACK  
    • Image...

    • "...What country can preserve its liberties, if its rulers are not warned from time to time, that this people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms ...What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure."
      Thomas Jefferson

    • 1 year ago
  • asherp
  • timmytucker
  • rainbowryan420
  • renbyrd
    • 0
      renbyrd  

    • This is really not the time to be spending money on government projects that do nothing to directly improve the economy. This recession is hitting everywhere and needs to be addressed in other countries like the UK, as well as the US.

    • 1 year ago
  • thetrimsmith
  • Scudettostarved
  • Mobius2012
  • Mobius2012
    • 0
      Mobius2012  
    • Image...

    • They're going to implement it, and it's one of the many plans that comprise the agenda known as none other than THE NWO!!! NEW WORLD ORDER< NOVUS ORDO SECLORUM, look at the back left side of your dollar bills people! It's very simple.... NWO ....and it's starting in Europe under the guised excuse of Terrorism, but this in and of itself is terrorism....

      Look Up Jordan Maxwell!!! Michael Tsarion Educate yourselves immediately.....

    • 1 year ago
  • rainbowryan420
    • 0
      rainbowryan420  
    • Mobius2012:

      most of the worlds government is corrupt

      but they are not all controlled by a magic spell casting cult
      and if it was they wouldn't be making obvious moves like this

      i can understand why you would think that the governments of the world don't tell their citizens about what they do but, to draw such an illogical conclusion is absurd

      i think we agree that we need a revolution
      and it doesn't matter who is right about this

    • 1 year ago
  • Mobius2012
    • 0
      Mobius2012  
    • Mobius2012:

      Um, who said that this was, as you so cynically put it, a ''magic spell casting cult''? If you were familiar with American History you would know that all the symbolism on the dollar was illustrated by the same group of people that devised the constitution, and 95 percent of them were Freemasons.....If you aren't familiar with Freemasonry, then I totally understand why you don't understand what the heck I'm talking about..........And this symbolism just looks like a picture in a kiddie book to the untrained eye.... Do yourself a favor and look into Jordan Maxwell, he'll give you the 101 on what the heck is really going on..... Don't bother responding to me either, I have nothing more to say...Just educate yourself and then make your definite conclusions...Please......

    • 1 year ago
  • Mobius2012
  • rainbowryan420
    • 0
      rainbowryan420  
    • Mobius2012:

      i know what freemasonry is and i have researched the Illuminati extensively and i disagree with you

      sorry i was so hostile about saying it

      but that last sentence of that post was the main point

    • 1 year ago
  • Mobius2012
    • 0
      Mobius2012  
    • Mobius2012:

      Cool, don't sweat it... My point is that it's kind of hard to dismiss suspicious events in history, like how not only was the declaration of independence finalized in 1776 but the illuminati was founded in 1776 by Adam Wieshapt and the French Revolution was unfolding as well, which Adam Weishapt Outlines as being part of his plan recorded in the book: Code of the Illuminati Memoirs Illustrating the History of Jacobinism by Abbé Barreul wriiten by Robert Edward Clifford 1798... It's a stunning book, and I assure you, no work of fiction purely historical......

      heres the link:

      http://www.sacred-texts.com/sro/mhj/index.htm

    • 1 year ago
  • Hollow_Eyes
    • 0
      Hollow_Eyes  

    • Ladies and gentlemen, I give to you Big Brother. Think about it. If this actually goes into effect, what's next? Random house searches for your own "saftey and security?"

    • 1 year ago
  • sushikillakid
  • paulos
  • Susieee
  • Wesnology61
  • alexandra_opny
  • lifestudentno83
  • ChristmasAsen
    • 0
      ChristmasAsen  

    • As the governments of the world continue to mimic the very "terrorist" they are supposedly against.

      Wait, I don't think even the terrorist do this.

    • 1 year ago
  • greenoak
    • 0
      greenoak  

    • Have any of you people every worked for the government?

      They're not the most competent of organizations. You're giving them entirely too much credit.

      This is just an example of fear-oriented journalism.

    • 1 year ago
  • toshiba
    • 0
      toshiba  

    • J Edgar Hoover could only dream of having this ability at his disposal! He was said to have been able to manipulate anyone he didn't like by digging the dirt on them by bugging and wiretaps.

      If this ability is railroaded into law using the BS excuses of 'crime and terrorism' there will be no stopping anyone in Authority with a grudge or an agenda digging up dirt on someone to force compliance.

      Want to protest about a fortnightly rubbish collection? Prepare to have your life scrutinised by some scrot in the Council.

      Think the complaint you made because a policeman shouldn't have thrown you to the ground and kicked you in the head? Your entire life will be scrutinised to make the complaint go away.

    • 1 year ago
  • toshiba
    • 0
      toshiba  

    • There's no way on Earth this kind of information would not be employed in the worst possible way to silence critics and control dissent.

    • 1 year ago
  • zk278206
    • 0
      zk278206  

    • "Those who give up a little freedom for a little security deserve neither and will lose both." -Benjamin Franklin

      think about it, this is 2008 not 1984!

    • 1 year ago
  • rainbowryan420
  • TrevTar
  • plasticbaby89
  • metalcookiesxy70
  • ChristmasAsen
  • metalcookiesxy70
  • Owwmykneecap
    • 0
      Owwmykneecap  

    • Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.

      Benjamin Franklin.

    • 1 year ago
  • petarro
  • shakeydeal0
  • power_packed_ro
  • lahim
    • 0
      lahim  
    • power_packed_ro:

      It doesn't really matter if you have nothing to hide or everything to hide...power like this can be used to benefit the people (like to fight terrorism), but if it gets into the wrong hands it can bring about the ruin iof democracy . I sort of think of taking away the right to privacy as an atomic bomb; it can be used to protect your country against many evils, but if taken to far, it can start a world war.

    • 1 year ago
  • Mobius2012
  • Jame89
    • 0
      Jame89  

    • While I am not from the UK, rather the US, I suppose that I don't mind governments doing these kinds of things because I have nothing to hide.

      My life (therefore my conversations & emails) is quite boring, so I must applaud them for having the willpower to stay focused & listening in. If their listening to me talking about synchronized figure skating for an hour will also allow them to solve terror plots, then so be it!

    • 1 year ago
  • JaetheFirst
    • 0
      JaetheFirst  

    • This world is officially FLAT. Soon are the days of massive (metaphysical) orgies of gossips and truths; no more are the days of absolute privacy. Damn.

    • 1 year ago
  • petarro
    • 0
      petarro  

    • You all are like a bag of babies. The reality is that this only protects you from threats. The other reality is that they don't care who you screw or which aunt do you think is an idiot...

      The communication is simply filtered, which means it's only monitored if it hits a certain keyword, tone of voice and chain of words. THEY DO NOT CARE!

      Be disgusted because they know what you download and what you read.

    • 1 year ago
  • ChristmasAsen
  • petarro
  • ChristmasAsen
  • lifestudentno83
  • rainbowryan420
    • 0
      rainbowryan420  
    • petarro:

      i know what you mean
      and i agree
      but you cant expect people to be understanding

      an extreme breach of privacy like this is offensive
      if you saw me looking into your window you wouldn't care if i was looking for terrorists you would beat the crap out of me or call the cops
      (maybe both)

      people are mainly scared that this can lead to worse things

    • 1 year ago
  • kennymotown
  • Owwmykneecap
    • 0
      Owwmykneecap  

    • Absolutely disgusting.

      So why don't some of you give them what they want; Terrorism.

      Not blowing yourself up on the bus, but attacking their infrastructure.

      6 burly blokes kicking the shit out of those boxes beside traffic lights in just a few select locations would cause absolute chaos and millions of pounds.
      wouldn't it be great?

      By the by I assume they are already tracking me ...

    • 1 year ago
  • TravG73
  • phillyharper
    • 0
      phillyharper  

    • They want a huge database which will hold the details of every single communication transaction made. They want to know when you called, where you were when you called, names, addresses, frequency. It gives them a good picture of who is associating with who and how often.

      It's not right, and we need to stop it. Check my link for more information.

    • 1 year ago
  • armchaircritic
  • Phoenix234
    • 0
      Phoenix234  

    • this is a break of our own privacy! if the government can see our emails and see what we say to our friends and family.

      how dare they think they have the rights to watch us on the internet.

      this isnt big brother.

    • 1 year ago

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