In Ottawa, the Canadian
government expanded on a bill that allowed police to remotely hijack computers
and track cell phones. The so-called “cyberbullying” legislation, Bill C-13,
would give law enforcement officers increased powers to install viruses on any
personal electronics and relay private data back to the police. All this can be
done with a judicial warrant given by a judge. Privacy experts warn that C-13
would allow for sophisticated viruses and exploit security flaws in electronics
for computer hackers. Furthermore, it can open up the possibility for other
government sectors to acquire this power, compromising the privacy of all
Canadians.
The first thing I want to address
about this new legislation is the government’s definition of “cyberbullying”.
If the Canadian government can make changes to the legislation by expanding on
the definition of bullies to anyone in society, then what is the point of
making the “cyberbullying” legislation in the first place? This looks like a
scheme to enforce government control over the freedom of speech on the
internet. Furthermore, what is to
prevent the government from expanding on the number of corporations being able
to utilize such viruses? The privacy of Canadians would be ruined by the
private information fed to corporations by these implementations.
The irony of this legislation is
that the Canadian governments are the ones who are the real bullies of this
scenario. Bill C-13 in itself is a virus that hides its true intent of
compromising the privacy of Canadians with the use of pretty words such as “cyberbullying”
and “anti-terrorism”.
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