The United Kingdom has been called the ‘Surveillance Society’. Citizens’ activities are monitored and kept in various data bases. It seems that many people in the UK will find that their internet service provider (ISP) has joined the surveillance movement:

“Six of the UK’s biggest net providers have agreed a plan with the music industry to tackle piracy online.

The deal, negotiated by the government, will see hundreds of thousands of letters sent to net users suspected of illegally sharing music.”

link: Net firms in music pirates deal

The question remains on how these suspected people will be identified. How can the ISP identify a possible incidence of piracy as opposed to a legitimate file transfer? The obvious issues are privacy and security of the customers’ online activities. It seems that the internet customers will have to prepare for the day when it becomes necessary to prove their innocence.

Catherine Forsythe