XPost: can.politics, bc.politics, ab.politics   
   XPost: ont.politics, sk.politics, man.politics   
   From: "@nyet.ca   
      
   Daily Brew – Thu, 29 May, 2014   
      
      
      
   Former head of spy agency calls Canadians ‘stupid’ for posting   
   information online   
      
      
   Guess what, Canada: We are "stupid" people who post way too much   
   personal information online.   
      
   This according to the former head of Canada’s response to the National   
   Security Agency, who seems to believe the problem with online privacy is   
   that Canadians expect it in the first place.   
      
   It's one of the biggest questions of our generation. How much   
   information do we share online, and how much protection do we expect   
   from prying eyes?   
      
   Can we post photos, phobias and phone numbers on social media without   
   having them come back to bite us in the backside? Or are we begging for   
   online snoops, including those employed by the Canadian government, to   
   snatch up our intel and wantonly put it to use?   
      
   According to John Adams, the former head of Communications Security   
   Establishment Canada, we're all dummies when we log on.   
      
   “One half is stupid, and the other half is stupid,” Adams said,   
   according to the Globe and Mail. “I can confirm that. We put more   
   online, [on] Facebook, than any other country in the world.”   
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   		[ Related: Privacy battle heats up over three bills that allow more   
   snooping ]   
      
   The comments came during a Senate meeting on Wednesday discussing a bill   
   to create an oversight committee for all of Canada's security and   
   intelligence agencies.   
      
   Canadian intelligence agencies have been under fire for their online   
   tactics recently. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service was accused   
   of snooping on pipeline opponents, and Communications Security   
   Establishment Canada (CSEC) is working on a system that monitors people   
   who use airport Wi-Fi hotspots.   
      
   The oversight bill, supported by Adams, would provide more insight and   
   perhaps better understanding about what government agencies are doing.   
   Though he seems to believe the problem is that Canadians post things   
   online in the first place, and not that government agencies gobble that   
   information up like a pack of hungry, hungry hippos.   
      
   Adams later called us "not very smart," so at least there's breadth to   
   his analysis.   
      
   Interim privacy commissioner Chantal Bernier had a differing view on the   
   subject, calling Canadians "trusting" and appreciative of the democracy   
   dedicated to protecting their privacy.   
      
   Adams' point, that Canadians are stupid because we post things online   
   and specifically on Facebook, is somewhat specious.   
      
   Yes, Canada was found to be the most active Facebook users in August of   
   2013, with 19 million users logging on at least once per month and 14   
   million checking their feeds daily.   
      
   But that's probably less about us wantonly flinging our personal   
   information into the hands of anyone who asks, and more about Canada   
   being the most connected country in the world.   
      
   The Globe and Mail reported in 2012 that Canadians spend an average of   
   45.3 hours a month browsing the Internet – that's more than any other   
   country.   
      
   The United States was second with 38.6 hours per person, meaning   
   Canadians spent an entire eight-hour work day longer every month just   
   surfing the Internet.   
      
   Canadians swim in online waters more than any other country. Saying we   
   are "stupid" for sharing more information online is like saying   
   Australians are stupid because they are more often attacked by sharks in   
   the Indian Ocean.   
      
   Do Canadians share too much information online? Sure, everyone does. And   
   nowadays the trust, faith and anonymity that once existed online are   
   fading, if not gone already.   
      
   But does that make us stupid?  Only if we post that personal information   
   expecting it to be stolen by our government or used in nefarious ways.   
   At best, Canadians are naive about posting their information online.   
      
   Stupid is a government proxy assuming that abusing the trust of Canadian   
   citizens is fair game because they were careless enough to go online in   
   the first place.   
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   That's also more than a little insulting.   
      
      
                [ Related: Spy agency gathers personal information in   
   cyberdefence role ]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)