Each time I read articles about Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo, Twitter, and Apple pushing back against government spying, I cannot help but ask myself why are they suddenly on the side of civil liberties and consumer protections.

So, I simply follow the money …

First, we find that Edward Snowden has revealed that the National Security Agency (NSA) has allegedly tapped the incoming and outgoing data pipes of the largest Internet Service Providers (ISPs), thus depriving them of the profit they would have amassed from selling consumer information to the government much in the same manner as the three major credit repositories, Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax.

Second, we find that these companies fear something far worse than the government’s intrusion into the personal and private lives of consumers. They fear a consumer backlash that would see stringent privacy legislation that would virtually curtail all government and commercial data gathering without significant private disclosures. The very disclosure of the exact information being gathered and presented to the consumer might chill their commercial activities to the extent that consumers no longer want to provide the treasure trove of data they once harvested for little or no cost.

And third, we find that the lack of trust in hardware, software, and allied services will have an extremely negative effect on their continued viability as a profit-making entity. One does not need Microsoft’s Office Suite if one can access an open source equivalent for little or no cost. Where the code and components can be examined for exploitable bugs as well as back doors. Already many security-conscious countries are wary of purchasing American software and hardware lest they discover that their trade secrets have been plundered by American corporations as it is suspected that the Chinese presently do to American corporations.

Bottom line …

So before I ascribe noble motives to those who are calling for a halt in alleged NSA spying activities, I would look more closely at the fortunes of those companies that are, all of a sudden, calling for constitutional and consumer protection from the government. Because, if we do not hold these very same corporations as accountable as their governmental counterparts, we have simply exchanged one master with an actual weapon for a master with an economic weapon.

Already we are seeing Facebook losing customers as the younger generation turns to more nimble and responsive methods of information sharing. Already we are seeing Twitter valued at $40 billion dollars – with relatively little no profit to sustain their stock prices … or even guarantee they will be a dominant playing in current social interactivity.

So before you allow your representatives in Congress to put forth legislation, demand that it cover commercial as well as government entities. Demand that the legislation includes heavy criminal penalties, with jail time, fines, and restitution, for those who would access and use personal private data for political, professional, or profitable gain without proper constitutional safeguards. Make corporate executives responsible for their company’s actions – no more allowing executives to simple agree to settle criminal or civil allegations by paying a “record” fine which is ultimately paid by the clients, shareholders, and taxpayers (when prices rise) without admitting or denying the allegations. No more confidential settlements that keep the true facts out of the public domain.

And, you may want to start obfuscating your own non-government data by misspelling your information, adding trackable initials, and making it harder for search engines to built accurate dossiers.  Read those cryptic privacy statements and terms of service agreements – and if necessary, use such services sparingly or using masking technology.

George Orwell would be surprised that our government and corporations have made 1984 a reality. All that is left, is the installation of a totalitarian regime – like that ultimately proposed by the progressive socialist democrats and their socialist/communist agenda.

-- steve

Related articles

Losing Your Privacy One Device at a Time: Routers With Unrestricted Vendor Remote Access and Spying Capabilities

Nsa "Fake Fix" Bill From Diane Feinstein -- Cosmetic Patch Authorizes Nsa Spying

NSA has top-secret catalog of 'keys' into world's security architecture

NSA slayer blasts new opinion on secrecy

NSA Review Group Report Stops Short of Recommending Real Reform of Agency