Tuesday 18 September 2012

Cost of Freedom


We live in a world where the freedom of information is available to all and what that the line which separates the freedom of information and our private lives gets blurred, we are no longer just private citizens who live in the digital age but citizens whose private information is digitalised along with everything that is termed information. This is where the cost of freedom gets a bit higher than it used to be as for one known popular search engine called Google this freedom is exploited and even divulged to institutions, businesses and co-operations who use the information that they get from Google when  you 'browse' or search for anything using their search engine. Lets say that something of national security interest you and you type in the search engine "terrorist bombs" , this new search query is now kept and listed in your search history that Google keeps and who knows it may even get you in the TSA watch list and worst case scenario cause some damage to your credentials of a law abiding citizen all because you typed in something that interest you out of mere curiosity
So what is really the cost of freedom? And where does the reach of freedom of information stop? as the CEO of Google Eric Schmidt said "if you have something you don't want anyone to know, then you shouldn't be doing it in the first place"so where is the freedom of privacy in that? what cost do we have to pay for privacy now that we live in the digital and information age? Maybe the 3rd Party Doctrine needs to be revisited and maybe then the cost of freedom will be balanced with the freedom of information.  

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