All the state’s spies

[xchrom]

http://www.salon.com/2012/04/23/all_the_states_spies/

Congress is seriously considering a bill called the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA). Intended to allow information sharing both between corporations and between corporations and the government, it presents serious dangers to individual privacy. The most important parts of the proposed act permit corporations to share information about their customers with each other and with the government if they assert that this information sharing is necessary for national security.


While the need for the better sharing of information might be necessary in some cases, in its current form CISPA represents a particular danger – a mutually reinforcing combination of public and private threats to privacy. Here are six things you should know about this pending legislation:

1. CISPA would allow companies to share potentially sensitive customer data with each other in ways that would otherwise be inconsistent with current laws that protect consumer privacy, such as the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA). As the ACLU notes, “Health records, gun records, tax records, census data, educational records – essentially all information now protected under privacy laws carefully considered and passed by Congress over the past decades –would no longer have that protection as cybersecurity information if these bills are to become law.” CISPA would also allow the government to require companies to share customer data without the warrant or subpoena that would be required under current law. The privacy rights of customers may be violated, in other words, without substantial evidence that they pose any kind of security threat.

2. CISPA would also pre-empt state laws that provide more privacy protection than the federal standard. Citizens in some states would face diminished privacy rights both now and in the future.

[MintyFresh]

1. what is wrong with these people

Have they all gone off the deep end? Congress is being controlled by lobbyists from corporations.

[truebrit71]

2. Sadly, you answered your own question...

...

[MintyFresh]

3. How do we stop them ?

They are ruining this whole country !

[Live and Learn]

4. What is wrong with the public?

Private prisons, militarized police, drones for police and universities, data mining of government information, privacy rights eroded daily and yet we seem to go along with it all.

Seem that everything this country was founded on is being dismantled and the public says nothing. Those that do are marginalized, harassed by police and mocked by the media. It truly is frightening.

[MintyFresh]

5. I don't know but

I am trying to do my part.
Your quote: "Those that do are marginalized, harassed by police and mocked by the media. It truly is frightening."

This is true & I believe that it has had its affect. Many are terrorized of speaking out for fear of retaliation. But are we going to give up? There must be a way to turn this around.