Slashdot Mirror
End of Online Anonymity in Canada?
boochy writes "Are we close to losing our anonymity online in Canada? As Angela Pacienza writes in a National Post article; "The record industry's attempts to sue people who share music online threaten to change the widely held expectation that everyone's anonymous when surfing the Internet, lawyers representing the public interest argued Monday."
This is a very interesting article that shows how much the lawyers representing the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic are trying their best to protect our privacy online."
Loosing?! Oh..."losing"...
No. We're not losing our anonymity. We never had it. Your email shows up on mail servers everywhere. Your IP is logged. You can be found.
There's a big difference between actual anonymity and perceived anonymity. The public thinks they're anonymous. The realization that they are not (through education or through lawsuits of these sorts) will lead to increased awareness and eventually smarter users.
Maybe I'm just optimistic.
How does this fit in with Canada's new privacy law that came into effect January 1st? Is this a legitimate business purpose?
Trolling is a art,
How can it be "the end of online anonymity" if we've never had it in the first place?
Support the First Amendment. Read at -1
But you have to remember the non-technical people.
Web browsers give no indication whatsoever to someone who knows nothing about computers that, 'Hey, I'm telling them who you are.'
Non-technophiles would assume that the net is anonymous because they are given no reason to think otherwise.
I actually see 2 different issues here. First, should a person's activities online be traceable? Yes - after due process. We all would love to see spammers caught, etc. However, the other issue is the record company's suit. Should they be suing? Well, the fact that I think they are greedy, stupid, outdated fools doesn't change the fact that they currently have a legal right to do so, I suppose. But here's to hoping they get some reasonable limits set on them soon (say real due process, reasonable limits to how much they can sue for, etc).
The big misconception in this, is that people believed they were anonymous in the first place.
Occam's razor is the blind faith in the natural selection of least resistance and in universal oversimplification. -- EF
The big misconception in this, is that people believed they were anonymous in the first place.
But it is possible to be totally anonymous, isn't it? If I use the internet through a computer in an internet cafe (and pay by cash), or use one at a public library, then that is untraceable as far as I can see.
If your subscribed to one of Western Canada's largest Internet service subscribers (Telus), you've already lost your 'anonymous' status. Telus sells your info to marketing companies - you got to opt out manually by calling thier privacy line.
Don't worry, it's just your mailing address, name, and your phone number. Telus swears they're not selling your email address but I wonder how much longer before they start to use that as a cashable asset?
At issue here is whether or not the music industry is allowed to snoop on your home PC's. Where's the search warrant I ask?
Point 1. Canada's law on privacy (FOIP) may protect us from RIAA anyways. New rules and guidelines came in effect on January 1st. It basically allows us to operate with business without reprocussions of invasion of privacy.
Point 2. Canada is already collecting a tarrif on CD's sold in Canada to go towards musicians from sales lost from online music sharing(even though most have never seen a red cent). If I'm already paying tarrifs on CD's to protect the music industry, do I not have a legal right to copy and download music I want?
Point 3. CD's were suppose to promise cheaper albums when first introducts in the 80's. Cost of production of an LP vs a CD is around 95% less. Where's my savings RIAA? Most albums still go for $15-20 dollars. Where's my promised $7 new albums?
Last Point. The last time the music industry shut down Napster, music sales plumeted 10%. Does file and music sharing spawn interest in CD's? What about albums or CD's I can no longer buy but the music is available P2P? Doesn't RIAA realise that they should be embracing this as an opportunity to change how music is sold? I mean, it's not like artists make money on albums anyways. Who's really behind this push?
Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things. - Peter F. Drucker
Untraceable to a degree.
As far as network logs go, the buck stops there. However, from that point is where a suitably motivated investigator begins collecting other intelligence. Be it it tapes from CCTV cameras, or just asking questions of employees and other patrons. You'd be amazed at how much information casual observers in such a situation will remember, and be able to provide an investigator.
Human intelligence is often the critical piece of info needed to pinch someone who has otherwise covered their tracks well.
For truly anonymous internet, find yourself a hotspot and a nice dark corner in which to hide (or alley to park in while wardriving). Oh, and spoof your MAC address as well, just to make it that much harder to pin it to your machine.
Cheers
That? That was a pigeon.