Social network sites 'monitored'?

Even if it is just to see who's talking to who, it's a very bad plan; If you join the same group, talk on the same group, get a friend request from some one that as militant ties, you will go under observation and try and catch you out. The government have used and abused the terrorist laws for a lot less.

One of my Ex's friends got arrested for the full duration of holding time as a supposed terrorist for doing research on Al qaueda as instructed by his uni lecturer.

Plus anti Brown protesters could technically be arrested for criticizing the government and call it an act of aggression to rally allies and take him out.

The question I want to know is that who monitors the government ? If they have a right to watch our every move, then we should be able to watch there every move.

If only Orwell would have thought to include the fun of social networking!

They monitor, then restrict, then shut down. We are entering phase one.

Scary. Very scary.

Not enough Orwellian references for this.

Of course! That's why everyone should be talking about the crap these bastards are pulling. Way too much work for them to keep up with those educated skeptics.

Everyone Google echolon and you will find that everything is being monitored by the NSA! In The EU it is no different!

If the general public concentrate themselves in defend our Constitution that has been burned; figuratively speaking; to the ground in many localities like San Francisco, that was once the City of the Civil Rights Movement, the entire Country would improve a whole lot. I do not know if that happened before 2000 but sure it is happening after 2000. All the Supervisors that sworn to defend our Constitution from foreign and domestic violators are themselves the violators of it. So go figure the consequences of that been displayed right on our streets and neighborhoods! Wake up San Francisco zombies!!! You're living in an acoustic concentration camp.

By the way do something useful today and sign this petition to regulate toxic waste in the US and abroad;

http://current.com/items/89916926/regulate_toxic_e_waste.htm

Who in "government" defines "dangerous" or "normal"?

Those in power write the definitions of "enemy combatants" and even define the terms we use to describe any "threat".

After decades of assaults on public schools by "Creationists", why couldn't those so indoctrinated become "the majority in our government" and why wouldn't those who believe "Creation Science" is junk science be considered "dangerous" or even worse, "threats to the nation"?

We already KNOW Bush and Cheney listened to and read the emails of people against the war in Iraq.

Organizations like Amnesty International and the Red Cross became targets of Bush Administration spying. They even considered most of the Democrats a necessary target for surveillance.

Ted Kennedy even made the Homeland Security airport watch list.

Do not let the "You've got nothing to fear if you've done nothing wrong" statement color your thoughts. All you have to do is count the collateral fatalities in Iraq to see how little our "government" thinks of innocent bystanders.

Additionally, we should move forward with trying Cheney and Bush for War Crimes in order to insure their brand of abuse is never again permitted.

We see now that corporations have actually become so big that the prospect of their financial failure becomes something that could destroy our economy. Do you think these corporations don't trade information with certain government agencies and vice versa?

I just deleted my myspace page (finally) and have zero friends on facebook because I'm not accepting friends. It's kinda a social experiment in online rejection.
If I was a CIA spook I'ld have long since created a "social networking site". Why spy when most will just reveal themselves willingly.

Paranoia me destroya! It would be wonderful if we live in a World where people were educated and caring. Oh my dream. Poof! Wake up, you have been monitored all along. Please, monitor "Current Radio News" if you want to know more about your own life and what is happening to your Country.

http://current.com/topics/88797731/current_radio_news/default/0.htm

I'm no rancher, but I have been told that sheep are remarkably complacent as they are led to slaughter.

Police have already been using these sights to find means to find arrestable proof of criminal offenses. This is more a file away for later use, information type of thing I guess though...

"And surely, all normal people shouldn't have anything to worry about if they're not going to "keep the content of conversations."

And that, free citizens, is the voice of ignorance in the face of fascism.

After all, "normal" people are fine. It's those "abnormal" people who bear watching.

We don't want to harm the Jews, we just need to keep track of where they live. And work. And worship.

We march and protest that the Taleban won't let girls attend school, and we let our own governments peruse our private lives as if we were fish in a fishbowl.

But, why should i be concerned? I'm normal. You, however, look as if you might need watching.

While I agree that any government shouldn't monitor networking sites to protect the privacy of individuals, a common ground must be reached in order to control the not-so-pretty side of these sites. The fact is, there are going to be terrorists, sex predators and hackers trying to access this information or use it as a means to communicate and scheme, so there must be someone keeping an eye out to control this.

The issue with this is that the line between the private and the public is becoming increasingly blurred; the fact is, when you post your information out on the internet, you do it at your own risk. In a sense, you are putting your information out there with a chance for the public to see it. Another issue is striking a balance between monitoring those who are abusing the online world for dangerous purposes, and protecting the rights of those who use the web for their own personal use.

i didnt know you could effectively find a terrorist or even for that matter make contact with terrorists on facebook...what're they gana do? "oh look his name is kawerlaerk arkser" thats clearly a terrorist name.. lets watch his profile and see how many times he gets poked. dumbasses

If this is part of plans to store details of every conversation, email etc then I don't beleive that the government won't store details of facebook conversations. It's all very scary and probably won't help much at all in fighting terrorism. What terrorist is going to discuss their plans on facebook? Especially now after these proposals have been so well publicized.

guess i should leave my al qaeda facebook group huh?

don't care about conversations... just care about who they are talking to.

thats like saying i don't want to shoot you, i just want you dead

It's not new, sure they are. This is their essence: to monitor. What do you think why twitter or facebook works? The gov monetary is in for tracking you.

not news t me... this is one reason why i stay away from most of these sites :D

Does that include current.com?

All in the name of public security!

This is why i already stopped using things like Facebook, eventually all traffic will be monitored and used against you, either via marketing or otherwise.

they renewed our eaves dropping crap without even a sound.

Ditto richjm - I don't want to sound like I've just finished reading 1984 and bought myself a beret. But for the government to be considering proposals to store all communications data and place this in the hands of a private company is a bit unnerving. What about the photographic evidence of my various traffic violations and public nuisances that friends of mine keep uploading to Facebook?

"The Home Office said it was needed to tackle crime gangs and terrorists who might use the sites, but said it would not keep the content of conversations."

Really? That's sounds as plausible as a "Let's get 1,000,000 members to join the fight against cancer" facebook group actually discovering a cure.

How is this any less invasive that reading emails or monitoring phone calls?
It is data the goverment doesn't have the right to harvest, regardless of whether it is public messages or private.
No one signed up to these sites under the knowledge the government may try abuse them.

The idea you'd do anything other than invade privacy is ludicrious and I don't believe the government for a second think this will stop terrorism, so then the question becomes "what do they really want?"

I don't think this is necessarily a bad move, with more and more people using social networks to communicate and the reported cases of criminals (Mafia and Taliban) using things like Skpye to try and dodge their calls being bugged, the government have to adapt with the times to keep up with the criminals.

I just kinda feel sorry for the poor guys that are gonna have to wade through tons of OMG! LOLZ! KTHXBAI! comments to find content that could pose a risk.

And surely, all normal people shouldn't have anything to worry about if they're not going to "keep the content of conversations."

Ok, without sounding like I've read 1984 one too many times, hearing the government wants to keep track of all my phone calls, emails, internet visits and games of Scrabulous isn't good. Why don't they have to obtain a warrant first?

Whilst I don't expect armed, faceless soldiers to storm my house in the middle of the night and 'disappear' me, I doesn't feel like a good direction for the country to be heading in, does it?