A recent PC World article covers a subject that will likely send a chill down the spines of American privacy activists. A proposal from the Department of Justice (DOJ) would give it more power to access remote computers subject to criminal investigations. DOJ claims the changes are needed since technically savvy criminals are skilled at hiding their online tracks. Many opponents of the proposal are concerned it circumvents the Fourth Amendment.
Anonymizing technology is nothing new and there are legitimate reasons one may wish to use it. One common technique is to chain anonymous proxies, making it hard for surveillance personnel to examine network traffic with normal techniques. Tor takes this a step further by encrypting routing information.
Using these techniques does not in and of itself make the user a criminal. Avoiding censorship and harvesting of personal information for marketing purposes are reasons someone may want to remain anonymous online.
From the DOJ’s point of view, it needs rule changes that would allow it to search computers outside of a judge’s district. Anonymizers and botnets make it hard to determine where a computer is located. Criminal activity can happen over computers in several districts and current rules generally do not allow search warrants outside a specific district.
Privacy advocates have several concerns about the DOJ proposal. They feel that if it is enacted, there would be little to no oversight of investigators. The expanded powers could compromise overall Internet security, because the government would be able to install zero-day malware on a widespread basis without software vendors being aware of its use.
Warrants must also be narrow and specific in scope so that no one becomes the target of an illegal or unreasonable search. The DOJ proposal raises concerns that warrants would be too broad.
One of the unfortunate sides of technology is that it allows evil people to break the law. U.S. law generally errs on the side of allowing such people to go free as long as the average citizen’s rights are preserved. The problem with allowing the government expanded power to search any computer it wants is that once that power is given, it’s difficult to take back when things don’t work as planned. Many people aren’t willing to take that chance.
Edited by Rory J. Thompson