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Data Retention in General |
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It is usually seen that technology is abused by many perverts who use it in destructive manner. In the case of the Internet, and Technology, there are many cases that provide us with instances of its misuse rather than appropriate use. It is usually seen that the electronic medium of data exchange is very difficult to trace and more so with the medium of the Internet where an individual can talk and remain in touch with any person. Potentially, this can be dangerous as any nefarious activity can easily be carried out under the guise of innocence with the use of this advanced technology. Keeping in view the rising levels of global terrorism, it is very important on the part of the government to take control of this alarming situation that can cause large scale destruction. In order to keep a check on all telephone and e-mails, the UK government has come up with Directive on mandatory retention of communications traffic data that enables the UK government to control and review the communication data so that if it is inappropriate and threatening to the security of the nation and its people, it can be traced and tracked as soon as possible to avert any possible mishap that can cost the life of millions.
Under this technique of data retention, the government can keep surveillance on any untoward activity that can cause harm to the public. This is an important step taken by the government of UK to ensure the safety of people. This drive of data retention was started by European Union that felt the grave need of a reviewing policy that is a must in modern times so that safety remains the prime focus. The European Union formally adopted this Data Retention Directive (2006/24/EC) on March 15, 2006. Under this law, the data that provides full details about the source of communication and its time and exact location. The data is generally stored for a period of ranging from 6 months to 2 years.
In the context of the UK, the data retention system is part of the Anti Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 (part 11). In the UK, the general outcry of the masses for the need of privacy made it difficult to implement the directive. Nevertheless, the Secretary of State for the Home Office came up with certain directives that made it mandatory to reveal details about the client who used the telephone, mobile or the Internet connection as part of the regular details these include the IP protocol, IMEI, IMSI and other related services. Under this program, the subscriber information will be kept for a period of 12 months. The telephone data will also be under retention for a period of 12 months that includes name and proof of caller, time of call along with IMSI, IMEI and MSISDN mappings. However, in the case of police services, the data can also be conversation, SMS, MMS and E-mails and it can be kept for a period of 6 months. For the prevention of terrorist activities, the police can review useful information such as financial deals in cash and credit cards, postal items and vehicle information that can even include the authentication proof of the vehicle. This data can be highly useful for the police, the security agencies and crime detection squads which are organizations that take care of national security.
In this regard, Google has come up as the leading commercial data retainer along with Amazon. However, this commercial move created a furor of sorts among the masses of UK and the adjoining areas, where the merger of Google with DoubleClick was seen as threatening the security of the masses since the data that would be shared for commercial purposes that has the potential to be misused. The New York State Consumer Protection Board was vociferous about the exploitation of such data for commercial purposes. This made the European Union ask Google to abide by the privacy rules of the government which it finally did.
Thus, if technology can be a boon, it can also become the doom of millions of people if it lands with the wrong person. The best use of technology happens only when privacy is not compromised for security. Technology has to be safeguarded from any possible misuse, since it is potentially dangerous in the hands of bad elements that are hell bent on wrecking havoc and bringing chaos in our lives. However, it is also necessary to ensure that the basic human rights are also protected so that in the name of curbing terrorism, we do not kill the fundamental rights of the citizens. The legal rights of citizens must be protected from any possible infringement. We should learn that technology has two faces, it can be used and abused, it depends upon us that what we want to make of it.
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