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The flexibility of ethics

By now I’m sure everyone has heard of the masses of information the NSA in America is collecting from everywhere in its efforts to combat terrorism in America – well that’s the official line anyway. And we’ve all observed or even been part of the uproar that followed about the right to privacy and all that.

The US President recently announced some reforms which the NSA will be subject to – officially at least – which were, to be polite, not strenuous on the NSA and other ‘data collection agencies’ at all. He also ordered a review of what the IT world likes to call ‘big data’, in this case the collection and storage of huge amounts of personal information. The catch here is that this review includes information collected by private companies.

Now suddenly, companies like Facebook, Yahoo and Google (and many more), who were publicly unimpressed with the NSA actions, have a problem. They want the freedom to collect personal information without limits and buy or sell it as they see fit – which means in whatever manner that makes a buck.

So governments collecting data that may one day prevent a terrorist attack – I know that potential is in the realm of the miraculous, but it could happen – is bad, but selling your users to any bidder is just fine. I’m sure that the lobbyists the tech companies have hired to buy off or persuade government officials in Washington are rephrasing that in a much more palatable way.

South Africa has no such problems. Companies and government can do what they like with your information. Of course there are a few laws about what they should and shouldn’t do, but these are weak and ineffective – and even if they weren’t, who can enforce them? If you want some fun, go ask your ISP to give you all the information they have on you, or for even more fun ask the cellular company you’re a victim of.

The Protection of Personal Information Act (PoPI) is supposed to change all that. But again, who is going to enforce it? PoPI is rather complex and I can’t see any local government agency being able to effectively police it, never mind enforce it and prosecute those who break the law. It’s a good idea though.

IFSEC SA is here again

Some information that should be made public is that IFSEC SA is here again this month. We have put together a 32-page preview of some of the companies and products you can see on the show, but as always we couldn’t do them all justice. You’ll just have to make a trip to Gallagher to see it all for yourselves.

Hi-Tech Security Solutions has a stand in our usual spot where our hard working minions will be handing out ice cream, as well as magazines and subscriptions. Personally, I’m totally against the idea of ice creams, I need a steady flow of coffee to make it through an IFSEC day – which is a way of hinting to exhibitors that have coffee on their stands to invite me for a visit.

Andrew Seldon

Editor

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