Technology Laws, Your Freedom

I personally love technology, especially my cell phone, and what it allows me to do. I can have immediate communication with friends and family,  I can have immediate entertainment with music, games, internet,  and social media sites.  My cell phone has become my lifeline. But with this technology and all it allows me to do, do I have the right to privacy anymore? What has happened?

In 2001, attacks on the Twin Towers in New York and the Pentagon passed a new law called USA Patriot Act which stands for Uniting (and) Strengthening America (by) Providing Appropriate Tools Required (to) Intercept (and) Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001. It expands the government’s ability to monitor foreign and domestic financial transactions and people they deem as terrorists. It undermines patriotism and is about freeing the gathering of intelligence by the government within the United States. The Patriot Act was signed into law by then President George W. Bush, and extended in 2011 by President Obama to include an extension including roving wiretaps and individuals not linked to terrorist groups. This can include anybody they identify as a threat. This was to be a temporary program put in place because of the attacks on American soil, but the government took it upon themselves to continue this program for ‘national security’. This is a direct threat to the United States Constitution and Americans privacy.

Another secret program that has been exposed code-named PRISM, which is a mass data-collection program. The government claims the need for this data mining in the name of ‘national security’ to keep the United States borders and citizens safe, they claim to have thwarted over fifty-two terrorist attacks because of these methods. With the technology today, there are other ways to track these criminals and terrorists groups without violating every citizen’s privacy or obtain a warrant and disclose this information. Americans’ deserve to know what is happening, and the laws being passed by our elected officials. If it is infringing on innocent people’s privacy, how can they pass a secret program without the approval of American citizens?

             

There are those who say if you are not doing anything wrong, why does it matter? Let’s look at this analogy differently; if a peeping tom is looking at you through a window and you are not doing anything wrong, does it matter? Pretty creepy! It is not the collection of the information that is a problem; it is what’s done with that information, and how it is interpreted. All citizens in America deserve to be safe, but law abiding citizens should be able to know, the information they provide companies, stays private. 

With new technology and different methods of obtaining information on civilians, the means of interpreting these aging laws are left in the hands of the courts. The laws need reforms reflecting the new technology to eliminate inconsistency in interpretation. Laws need to reflect changes in technology and eliminate differences in how they are interpreted and hold lawmakers responsible. If lawmakers can’t provide protection of privacy for all, we need to vote for representatives that will.

The technology is there for tracking people with cell phones and collecting data on everybody that has one. It is being used all of the time, mostly for the right reasons, but laws need to be addressed to clarify specifics for the courts to determine whether a certain digital surveillance method invokes Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches and our right to privacy. Why should everyone that uses new technology have to worry who might be watching their every move? 

Technological advances today have brought convenience to people’s lives, but we are slowly losing our freedom of privacy. This would be a great time to start paying attention to the laws that our state and federal representatives are trying to pass. It is the responsibility as a U.S. citizen to be educated about the interpretations of laws surrounding accessibility that law enforcement and government officials have, which enable them to infringe on the privacy of citizens without their knowledge. 

If these technologies are to be enjoyed the way they are intended, our representatives at the state and federal levels, controlling privacy, need to review proposals presented to them in a timely manner and make sure they are written to protect all American citizens’ privacy. As the technological world advances, government and criminals need to be stopped from invading our privacy. If the decisions being made do not protect privacy of Americans and the Constitution, then it is time ‘We the People’ take back control of our privacy, and demand the government uphold our Constitution and the Fourth Amendment.

Posted By: Jeff Trangsrud