Signal intelligence too eager to expand their operations
2008-06-17 – 01:42Wednesday the Swedish Parliament will vote on whether to allow the Swedish Armed Forces’ signal intelligence, FRA, to monitor all traffic (Internet, telecom, …) passing in and out of Sweden. If the bill is passed, the Swedish signal intelligence will have the legal right to — and surely will — apply data mining to data traffic between ordinary citizens in Sweden and their foreign peers.
To date, FRA is only allowed to intercept radio communication. The agency was to great help during the cold war, recording and deciphering Soviet communication. Since then, FRA has been looking for a new mission. Today, signal intelligence, I think, should be applied to the Internet and telecom when investigating organized crime, terrorism and such. But searching the conversations of ordinary citizens indiscriminately for possible clues? No! This is far fetched and has no place in a liberal democracy.