Πριν από μερικές μέρες ήρθε στην επιφάνεια ένα νέο πρωτοφανές σκάνδαλο σύμφωνα με το οποίο οι μεγαλύτεροι διαδικτυακοί κολοσσοί όπως οι Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Yahoo, Apple κ.α. υποχρεούνται να share data about their users' electronic communications with the NSA and the FBI based on the secret program PRISM.
Such scenarios have been circulating for many years, but for the first time in public, tentative evidence has been given that US security services derive mass information from the servers of the aforementioned companies.
The attitude of Google
While at first - like most companies - Google denied the existence of any agreement with the two government agencies, it later changed its stance and decided to speak directly about how it provides access in the data of its users.
According to what was revealed by the press representative of the company, Chris Gaither, its giant searchs does not provide direct access to its servers but has a dedicated dropbox server for the NSA where files are transferred via FTP, while more rarely they are printed and delivered hand-to-hand.
Google then asked US Attorney General Eric Holder and FBI Director Robert Mueller to let her make public all the government mandates about the PRISM secret program. As she mentions in her letter, her purpose is to clarify to the public that her involvement is not as great as the reports so far.
Who is PRISM?
It can PRISM related to communications within the US, but this does not mean that it is an American affair and does not concern Europe. After all, as long as we use services of American origin and communicate with US residents, we can in no way assume that we remain unaffected.
In order to clear up the cloudy landscape, European Commissioner Viviane Reding asked for clarifications on PRISM and other "secret" monitoring programs through a letter sent to Eric Holder. Among the questions he raised was whether the program also targets citizens of the European Union, what kind of data the US authorities have access to, and how to prevent the monitoring of its communications. The European Commissioner is expected to meet with Eric Holder in Dublin in the days to discuss all these crucial issues.
Besides, in addition to the US, many countries are asking technology companies to provide data to their users, with examples of Great Britain, France, Germany, Turkey and the other countries listed below :
On the other hand, there is little and the EU members reacting to PRISM saying they are against their legislation and asking the European Commission to mediate, first and foremost, Finland.
What does it matter if I do not have something to hide?
Some may wonder what so bad PRISM can do to you if you have nothing to hide. The point is that everyone has something to hide even if it doesn't involve any criminal or terrorist act and it should be an inalienable right to be able to protect the privacy and his personal data. In other words, even if you have nothing to hide and no one ever bothers with your phone conversations, texts and emails, you have to live with the thought that something like this could happen at any time.
Who benefits from PRISM?
It is obvious that those that benefit mainly are encryption companies, as users now perceive the risk and turn to their products. Companies like Silent Circle, GNUPG, and Cryptocat provide end-to-end encryption, which means that in order to gain access to your data, you will need to request it directly from yourself.
How can I protect my data?
Δυστυχώς αν θέλετε να διατηρήσετε τα δεδομένα σας ασφαλή θα πρέπει να ξεχάσετε τις συνομιλίες από smartphones, τις αναζητήσεις στη μηχανή της Google, τις επισκέψεις στο Facebook, τα Skype, YouTube, Gmail, Yahoo Mail and Google Drive and look for other less common alternatives. Otherwise, we will have to hope that the reactions of more than 85 major organizations and the vast majority of ordinary users will prove capable of ending the secret US surveillance program.
Source: techgear.gr