By Gary Howard
From the Washington Post and other outlets, we learn some news on a peculiar partnership.
The world’s largest Internet search company and the world’s most powerful electronic surveillance organization are teaming up in the name of cybersecurity.
Not one word of that sentence makes me feel at ease.
Under an agreement that is still being finalized, the National Security Agency would help Google analyze a major corporate espionage attack that the firm said originated in China and targeted its computer networks, according to cybersecurity experts familiar with the matter. The objective is to better defend Google — and its users — from future attack.
Google and the NSA declined to comment on the partnership. But sources with knowledge of the arrangement, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the alliance is being designed to allow the two organizations to share critical information without violating Google’s policies or laws that protect the privacy of Americans’ online communications. The sources said the deal does not mean the NSA will be viewing users’ searches or e-mail accounts or that Google will be sharing proprietary data.
If you’ve been pondering whether to seriously reduce your web presence, this looks like your opportunity to distance yourself from all Google-related internet products (if that’s possible).
With the Patriot Act coming up for reauthorization, people should make it clear that we do not care to have further government intrusions into out private cyber lives. And Google should remember what their slogan is: Don’t Be Evil.