According to the article, "Installation of the software wiretap is to be carried out on the instructions of a judge only." so I imagine authorities will have to go through the normal due process. From what it sounds like this is a means to tap VOIP conversations much in the same way telephones have been bugged in the past. This is merely coming up to pace with today's technology.
Now if this were applied in the US and could be installed without a judge's consent (a la the Patriot Act), your standard privacy concerns would apply, but the impression I get is that this is a case of the Swiss authorities catching up with today's technology.
Give the fact that the law can be dodged completely it only serves to make us all less secure. It removes a check and balance from our society and opens up to abuses by the Police and other government organsiations.
In terms of a threat to the average citizen of any particular state, the threat posed by terrorism is right down in the noise level.
I think this hits the nail on the head. The point of terrorism is to terrorize and spread fear. The thought of getting caught up in a terrorist attack seems to scare people much more than it should given that the odds of getting killed in a terrorist attack are so low. So in order to "protect" its citizenry what does the government do? They pass laws and take steps that give comfort to the people to soothe their irrational fear even though these steps are of little help in actually preventing terrorism.
For example, after the recent bombings in London, police activity in the New York area was stepped up. I saw policemen on the trains and an increased national guard presence in Grand Central. Will these people really be able to prevent a well though out terrorist attack...no way. However, when people see this they tend to feel better.
It's the same with the laws getting passed to fight terrorism. Anyone who is capable of pulling off a massive attack is not going to be stopped by these laws, they will just work around them.
It seems that since terrorism plays on people's emotions so much, the steps the government takes seems to try to calm these fears rather than make thing inherently safer. So now we are left with reduced liberties that are prone to abuse just to calm an irrational fear in the average citizen.
You don't buy a $4,000 amp for your first stereo. You don't buy a Ferrari Testerosa for your kid to learn to drive on. You don't teach a newly hired cook to make baked Alaska before he can make a grilled cheese sandwich. Why do we believe this doesn't hold up for computers?
That may be the case, but if you sell computers wouldn't it be great if some sap would buy a top of the line machine even if it's way beyond them. Of course a Ferrari salesman would be hard pressed to sell one of his cars to the parents of a new driver, but that's because the risks of inexperienced driving are well known. I think it is the (relative) newness of the computer industry that makes people not realize what they are getting may be total overkill. Instead they just see a cool new device that will make them the envy of their friends.
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According to the article, "Installation of the software wiretap is to be carried out on the instructions of a judge only." so I imagine authorities will have to go through the normal due process. From what it sounds like this is a means to tap VOIP conversations much in the same way telephones have been bugged in the past. This is merely coming up to pace with today's technology.
Now if this were applied in the US and could be installed without a judge's consent (a la the Patriot Act), your standard privacy concerns would apply, but the impression I get is that this is a case of the Swiss authorities catching up with today's technology.
I think the modern version of "arrh" is "dude."
Yeah but '"arrh" you gettin' a dell' wouldn't quite work then.
I know your SSN. It's 000-00-0966!
Way to go you clod!!! That wasn't his SSN, that's mine. I demand you remove it from the internet before everyone else knows it!!!
As long as you don't look, no problem!
Yeah but I think you're forgetting about the smell
In terms of a threat to the average citizen of any particular state, the threat posed by terrorism is right down in the noise level.
I think this hits the nail on the head. The point of terrorism is to terrorize and spread fear. The thought of getting caught up in a terrorist attack seems to scare people much more than it should given that the odds of getting killed in a terrorist attack are so low. So in order to "protect" its citizenry what does the government do? They pass laws and take steps that give comfort to the people to soothe their irrational fear even though these steps are of little help in actually preventing terrorism.
For example, after the recent bombings in London, police activity in the New York area was stepped up. I saw policemen on the trains and an increased national guard presence in Grand Central. Will these people really be able to prevent a well though out terrorist attack...no way. However, when people see this they tend to feel better.
It's the same with the laws getting passed to fight terrorism. Anyone who is capable of pulling off a massive attack is not going to be stopped by these laws, they will just work around them.
It seems that since terrorism plays on people's emotions so much, the steps the government takes seems to try to calm these fears rather than make thing inherently safer. So now we are left with reduced liberties that are prone to abuse just to calm an irrational fear in the average citizen.
That may be the case, but if you sell computers wouldn't it be great if some sap would buy a top of the line machine even if it's way beyond them. Of course a Ferrari salesman would be hard pressed to sell one of his cars to the parents of a new driver, but that's because the risks of inexperienced driving are well known. I think it is the (relative) newness of the computer industry that makes people not realize what they are getting may be total overkill. Instead they just see a cool new device that will make them the envy of their friends.