CityNews
It’s not exactly Big Brother and the overall intentions seem to have
the public’s best interest at heart. But many are very uncomfortable
about a proposed new law being introduced in the House of Commons on
Thursday that could affect anyone using the Internet in Canada.
The bill, with the unwieldy name of “An Act Regulating Telecommunications Facilities to Support Investigations,” would allow police to force your ISP to hand over any records of your emails, chat room conversations, website history or surfing habits to authorities without a warrant.
Police across the country contend it’s a necessity because the Worldwide Web has become a haven for criminals, pedophiles, terrorists, drug dealers and scam artists, who use its anonymity and the current regulations to plot and commit criminal acts that take advantage of the public.
They point out the old laws were written in a time before the world had ever dreamed of something called “the Internet” and that new rules are needed to fight new enemies and the technology they employ.
While some are taking the old “if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear” route, the idea of granting near carte blanche access to the online habits of Canadians is very disturbing to others, no matter what the reason.
