It’s the era of spying, monitoring, and of course, whistleblowers. We’ve had so many news items on governments making sure that they know what’s going on – hence the monitoring of practically all kinds of communication. We’ve also had quite a few high profile cases wherein people in the know have come public.
What’s the truth?
Remember, there are always at least two sides to a story, and the average person will probably never get to know the whole picture, but I think it’s pretty safe to say that the government is keeping tabs on what’s floating in the airwaves – or cables, for that matter. Whether you send an email or a text message or make a phone call, the chances are that there might be someone else listening in.
Of course, there is always the argument that if you have nothing to hide, there is nothing to worry about. But is there really ever a person who has nothing – absolutely nothing! – to hide? Plus, there is the not-so-simple issue of privacy. For some people, even though they have nothing to hide, the mere thought of having their privacy invaded is enough to throw them off.
Sad probability: nothing is ever really private.
The National Security Agency has been in the limelight recently, thanks to its monitoring and tracking activities. I don’t know if you’ve heard about TAO, which is purportedly the NSA’s elite hacking team. For deeper details on how the NSA might just be tracking ordinary citizens, here’s an infographic created by Mobistealth.
It starts off with highlighting what the NSA’s mandate supposedly is, and as can be expected, diverges toward not-so-savory activities the agency may or may not be engaged in. Surprisingly – or not – some private entities are also named, entities that give the NSA a helping hand.
Take a look at the infographic, and let us know in the comments if you think this is the stuff conspiracy theories are made of or not.
Lead image via Ed Yourdon