Telescreens

“He thought of the telescreen with its never-sleeping ear. They could spy upon you night and day, but if you kept your head you could still outwit them. With all their cleverness they had never mastered the secret of finding out what another human being was thinking. Facts, at any rate, could not be kept hidden.”

- George Orwell, 1984

My sister got me an Alexa for Christmas.  She and her husband gave it to me with big smiles on their faces.  As I took it in my hands, my blood pressure spiked hotly.  

Technology scares me. Maybe it’s all the comic books and sci fi movies as a kid, but this stuff freaks me out.  So, for the last couple years I’ve been chicken little with my family about technology. 

I get it. The sky isn’t falling yet. And Sky-net is not self-actualized (Terminator 2). But the sky is listening.  And the sky is watching.

Lately our area has received national attention for a large number of arrests related to solicitation for prostitution at massage parlors (If you know anyone who got nabbed in this, have them call a criminal defense lawyer).

I haven’t (as of writing this) looked deeply into these cases, but my understanding is that law enforcement, through the use of a warrant, snuck hidden cameras into the massage spa.  Hearing this made the hair on my neck stand up…because I could see where we might be headed…

Right now, many local law enforcement agencies have the ability to use miniature portable cell phone towers to intercept communications from cell phones.  To use this, they need a warrant.

This type of technology is amazing.  Not too many years ago, you had to be deep in the intelligence community to have access to this type of hardware.  Now, a sheriff’s deputy can get his hands on one of these things.  It seems like we can expect greater and cheaper technology to continue to end up in the hands of local cops. 

So, it is foreseeable that whatever the intel community has now, local cops will have soon. And guess what…the intelligence community currently has the ability to access cameras on devices. 

Think of all the cameras in your home these days: phones, computers, security camera,  baby monitors, TVs, video game console…even your modern fridge has a camera.  All of these cameras can be accessed by currently available methods.

So, in 5 years, when the local cops have a little device that they can ride around with that turns on all the cameras in a home…all they’ll need is probable cause. Maybe a confidential informant bought some pot from a teenager living in a home. Maybe somebody has accused someone of theft.  The cops will dictate this probable cause into their phone onto an e-warrant and instantly have a judge e-sign.  A flip of the switch and boom…1984.

I’ve heard it said that a good measure for the health of a free society is the methods used by law enforcement to investigate crime (Winston Churchill).  By that yardstick I think we are not dead, but we’re at the beginning of an infection that could become serious.

 In the South, you’re taught that it’s rude to refuse a gift.  For this reason, the Alexa is out in my shed still partially wrapped…my sister thinks it is hilarious.