Project ECHELON
Anthony Bruschino
Sociology 101-L 200
Professor Lehrer
Email is close to being one of the most
common forms of communication, but few have thought about just how safe such
interaction may be. It is not uncommon for today’s generations to unwind at
night in front of the computer and send a few emails to friends and families
about their day or any other topic in mind. At the other end of the spectrum,
such open ended means of communication could be just as easily used by any
number of terrorist, drug dealers, pedophiles or any organized crime. This
becomes a shady situation.
Governments around the world have been
thinking about this and responding in ways not generally known by the public
since 1947. No, that date is not a mistake. This becomes a very controversial
issue because here in the year 2002, the world is covered in various networks
owned by a diverse number or corporations, governments, businesses and
individuals. These scattered networks are all interconnected to provide us with
the means of instant worldwide communication. By sending an email to your
friend on the other side of the country, your personal message may go through
any number of other networks and computers. This allows for the ability to see
the data you are transmitting. Governments know this and have taken advantage
of it, in a very sneaky way.
As in other countries, it is illegal
here for our government to spy on us in such a manner. This did not stop our
government or any other government, however. Enter project ECHELON, a worldwide
system designed by various governments of the world to intercept common forms
of communication, especially electronic mail, and subject it to automated
analysis. The laws were circumvented by a mutual pact among five nations. It is
illegal for the
Designed and coordinated by United
States National Security Agency (NSA), the ECHELON system is used to intercept
ordinary e-mail, fax, telex, and telephone communications carried over the
world's telecommunications networks. Unlike many of the electronic spy systems
developed during the Cold War, ECHELON is designed primarily for non-military
targets such as governments, organizations, businesses, and individuals in
virtually every country. It potentially affects every person communicating
between, and sometimes within, countries anywhere in the world. ECHELON is not
designed to eavesdrop on a particular individual's e-mail or fax link. Rather,
the system works by indiscriminately intercepting very large quantities of
communications and using computers to identify and extract messages of interest
from. This massive surveillance system apparently operates with little oversight.
Moreover, the agencies that purportedly run ECHELON have provided few details
as to the legal guidelines for the project. Because of this, there is no way of
knowing if ECHELON is being used illegally to spy on private citizens.
Once again, we see how the advances made
in technology seem to be at the expense of the individual’s privacy. I’m fairly
certain most people would agree it is a good idea to be able to intercept
communications between mass crime organizations, but at whose expense is this
implemented? There is a conflict between and within societies. There is serious
conflict between the ordinary citizen and that which governs those citizens.
The individual’s privacy is being sacrificed by the top-down thinking the
government is using, seemingly completely disregarding the rights of its
citizens.
Every new technology in history has
always first been introduced and used (or abused) by the established powers, in
support of their activities, particularly war and policing, and as an
instrument of controlling public opinions and suppressing alternative thought
and action. At the time, every new medium has always and can always also be
used as an instrument of liberation, better communication, alternative thought
and action. Print was the first important example, the computer is the last. As the author of PGP (Pretty Good Privacy, a pro-privacy encryption
program) said, “If privacy is outlawed, only outlaws will have privacy.”
Sources
Bernal,
Javier. “BIG BROTHER IS
ON-LINE: Public and Private Security on the Internet.” Cybersociology.
http://www.socio.demon.co.uk/magazine/6/enfopol_echelon.html.
