[BITList] Sir Tim Berners-Lee is right: we do 'confide' in the web

[John Feltham]

On 19/04/2012, at 9:01 PM, Telegraph Technology wrote:

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> 	Thursday, April 19, 2012
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> Techbriefing
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>  	Sir Tim Berners-Lee is right: we do ‘confide’ in the web
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> Yesterday Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the computer scientist who invented world wide web, threw his weight behind the strong opposition to the Government’s new controversial surveillance plans.
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> Sir Tim managed to powerfully put forward the internet user’s case against the proposals to allow the country’s security services to monitor which websites people are viewing and their online communications.
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> Until now we have mainly heard from human rights watchdogs and data protection experts about why these proposed Big Brother-esque surveillance laws are not fit for purpose.
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> However, Sir Tim’s articulation of why these plans should not come to pass has best summarised the regular web user’s concerns about the Government’s potential new snooping powers: "The amount of control you have over somebody if you can monitor internet activity is amazing,” he said. 
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> "You get to know every detail, you get to know, in a way, more intimate details about their life than any person that they talk to because often people will confide in the internet as they find their way through medical websites … or as an adolescent finds their way through a website about homosexuality, wondering what they are and whether they should talk to people about it.”
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> The Home Secretary’s proposals will allow police and intelligence officers to monitor who someone is in contact with and which websites they visit, although the content of the communications will not be accessed. The Coalition faces a backlash over the £200m a year scheme. David Davis, the former Shadow Home Secretary, said it was an “unnecessary extension of the ability of the State to snoop on people”.
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> Sir Tim added: "The idea that we should routinely record information about people is obviously very dangerous. It means that there will be information around which could be stolen, which can be acquired through corrupt officials or corrupt operators, and used, for example, to blackmail people in the government or people in the military. We open ourselves out, if we store this information, to it being abused."
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> He admitted that of all the developments on the internet – it is surveillance by governments which keeps him up most at night. Thankfully web users can sleep easy knowing Sir Tim will crusade against such draconian proposals on their behalf.
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>  	 WHO TO FOLLOW ON TWITTER	 
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> 	 	Who: Nate Lanxon - Editor of Wired.co.uk
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> Why: Lanxon tweets a good mixture of tech news and trivia.
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> Sample tweet: "My excitement over discovering all the retro titles Netflix suddenly has must stop. I've now found Inspector Gadget. All is good in Earth."
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>  	THIS WEEK'S REVIEWS	 
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> Pocket - iPhone, iPad and Android (free)
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> "Pocket, the new incarnation of Read it Later, offers a beautiful and clever way of reading the things you've saved for later.”
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> Indu Chandrasekhar
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>  	Amazon Kindle Touch (£109 wifi; £169 3G)
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> "If you’re given a Touch you’ll appreciate it and you may never want to go back. But the standard Kindle is faster and cheaper. If you’re buying one yourself, or offered the choice, it’s your better option."
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> Matt Warman
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>  	The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings Enhanced Edition - (from £33.68) 
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> "With A Game of Thrones, the TV show on everyone’s lips and the roaring success of Skyrim in video games, never has the appetite for grown-up fantasy been so strong. The Witcher 2 comfortably stands among the finest legends the genre has to offer."
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> Tm Hoggins
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>  	 THIS WEEK'S OTHER ESSENTIAL READS	 
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> 1. We may finally have a date for the largest ever internet company flotation. Facebook's IPO is expected on May 17. Find out more detail via this interesting Telegraph report.
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> 2. Find out how broadband providers have responded to a Parliamentary inquiry to force them to block pornography in a bid to protect children from this great Telegraph reaction piece.
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> 3. The Telegraph's Matt Warman puts the Olympic Torch through its paces in a wind tunnel in Munich. Enjoy this entertaining account.
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> 4. Have a read of Google founder Sergey Brin's fascinating u-turn over criticisms he made of Facebook and Apple earlier in the week on his Google+ profile.
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> 5. Are you going to miss Ceefax? As millions lose access to the BBC teletext service because of digital switchover, we look back at 10 of its greatest features.
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> 	 	 Follow Emma on Twitter   |   Contact Emma: techbriefing at telegraph.co.uk
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