The Internet isn’t broken, but that hasn’t stopped Congress from trying to fix it.
We got our first taste of their reforms when Congress tried to pass SOPA, the Stop Online Piracy Act, and PIPA, the Protect IP Act, earlier this year and met a wave of opposition, which included blackouts on prominent websites.
Now, Congress has cybersecurity on the tip of their tongues. Bill S.2105, also known as the Cybersecurity Act of 2012, is coming up for a vote and being touted as a bill that would strengthen the security of the country’s infrastructure. The bill would put the Department of Homeland Security in charge of regulating important systems, such as power grids and transportation networks.
However, much like the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) that passed through the House a month ago, the Cybersecurity Act also deals with people’s private information and how such information can be shared.
The Cybersecurity Act would allow private companies to share users’ private information with government agencies like the NSA or other companies without first requiring a warrant or subpoena.
Essentially, our private information, the bits and pieces of data that can paint a picture of who we are, becomes a commodity to be traded by various companies and the government and collected in databases, all in the name of “cybersecurity.”
Yet, the information doesn’t necessarily need to be used for cybersecurity. The bill would allow the government to use the collected information for other purposes as well, including law enforcement, greatly expanding the scope and knowledge of our country’s security apparatus.
If you thought that was bad, the kicker is that companies who participate in the program would gain immunity from any criminal or civil complaints against the use of shared information.
Goodbye, privacy. Hello, Big Brother.
Yes, I know. “If you don’t have anything to hide, you have nothing to fear.” However, I have quite a few reservations about handing the government such a treasure trove of information on its citizens.
If the bill passes, the Internet would cease to be a place where people can come to freely find information. Every web search, every key stroke and every click of a mouse would feel watched as citizens realize everything they do may be collected by the government.
You might as well place an NSA agent behind someone’s shoulder every time they log in to a computer.
Still, it’s likely that this bill won’t pass. SOPA and PIPA were killed by an Internet campaign led by prominent companies such as Google and Wikipedia. CISPA has essentially stalled thanks to a veto threat from the Obama administration.
However, Obama has already come out in support of the Cybersecurity Act. Also, Google and many of the other Internet companies that came out against SOPA didn’t show such opposition to CISPA, so it is unlikely they would rally around opposing this bill.
Security is a noble goal, but it’s curious that many security-related bills cost so much in civil liberties. It’s also striking that a bill like the Cybersecurity Act would be introduced after the string of controversial Internet-related bills that were debated in Congress this year.
With every Internet-related bill that has entered its chambers, Congress has demonstrated a fear of the Internet’s decentralized and anonymous nature and a desire to rein in that anarchy.
However, I bet most people don’t want the Internet to change so drastically. I would also wager that people are more concerned about protecting their information than having it shared and collected without their say.
A bill that protects people’s freedoms – not sells them out – should be the type of bill considered instead.
In the end, the fate of bills such as the Cybersecurity Act remains in the hands of Congress.
If the bill passes, I fear the fate of Internet freedoms in this country could take a step in the wrong direction.
David Scheuermann is a 20-year-old mass communication and computer science junior from Kenner. Follow him on Twitter at @TDR_dscheu.