Nobody’s privacy is safe.
When it comes to the Internet, no one is free from the grasp of powerful tech giants — unless someone or something stands up for the rights of the users.
This became abundantly clear when the National Security Agency scandal made headlines last month. Following the NSA security leaks by former NSA employee Edward Snowden, who is currently hiding from the U.S. government, major phone carriers and companies like Facebook and Google are under fire for providing the government with access to private data about millions of consumers.
Whether Snowden is a hero or a shady hacker is irrelevant — the real issue is that no one can actually feel safe on the Internet anymore.
But there are some programmers who are fighting for a user’s right to true privacy. Steve Kondik, also known as Cyanogen, has been developing an open source smartphone software replacement named CyanogenMod with his team since August 2009.
The software replaces a smartphone’s firmware with a new one that mimics the most recent release of Android — save for a few tweaks and improvements.
The most recent release of CyanogenMod, 10.1, offers a feature that gives users a little more control over their privacy. The feature, called PushSMS, was created by a popular developer named Koush, who was inspired by Apple’s iMessage.
The feature essentially encrypts all messages so no one — not even the NSA — can break in and steal them. The PushSMS will be transparent, which means it will also apply to all messaging clients and apps — providing the phone they’re on is running the most recent version of CyanogenMod.
Sure, the NSA scandal is more far-reaching than simple text messages, but this shows that true privacy may be attainable in the future.
There exists an enormous community of coding geniuses who are responsible for programs like CyanogenMod. These hackers, coders and programmers — like Edward Snowden — have not only shown the world that our privacy is at risk, but have shown us that, given the right circumstances, we have the power to take it back.
Outside of that community, few smartphone consumers possess the ability to take action against this type of intrusion. Even with programs like CyanogenMod, few users know or care to know how to use it to combat the NSA.
As consumers who have a massive presence online, we should support CyanogenMod in its attempt to protect our privacy. There is power in numbers, and if enough people show an interest in having their privacy protected at this level, giants like Google and Facebook will be forced to listen.
This is a small start, but it might spread. Soon enough, there could be SMS encryption built into Android. Then, there could be encrypted phone calls on certain carriers. The possibilities are endless, provided we show the world that we are concerned enough about our privacy to do something about it.
Connor Tarter is a 21-year-old communication studies senior from Dallas, Texas.