http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1287695/Obama-given-right-shut-internet-kill-switch.html
Apparently if there's some sort of crisis involving the Internet that puts lives or whatever at risk, Obama can stop all Internet communications. It's a little scary, but I honestly doubt it will ever be used, y'know?
Discuss.
Quoteinternet putting lives at risk
They have no idea what they're doing. That usually happens with internet usage anyway...
Quote from: Lotos on June 29, 2010, 09:02:50 PM
They have no idea what they're doing. That usually happens with internet usage anyway...
Because losing vital infrastructure such as water distribution facilities, electric power plants, DoD, the Pentagon, and military installations via the internet due to terrorists or enemy combatant nations won't put lives at risk at all. In the United States, there are many chokepoints the enemy can sabotage, such as the Colorado River and its dams (supply the entire West coast with water), Arizona electrical facilities (supply southern California with electricity), and virtually any one of the very few railroads coming from the Midwest (breadbasket of the whole nation).
Even if they do not mount direct attacks, tactical information (esp. in the middle of a war) that a combatant nation can steal can cost not only military defeats but also numerous civilian lives, should the routs occur in high density areas. Extreme, EXTREME example: Chinese figure out our radar capabilities, scan shifts, radio frequencies, etc. on Hawaiian islands, mount Pearl Harbor-esque attack and seize it.
They're looking at this from a tactician's standpoint instead of a civilian's. It's not "how free can we get;" it's "how secure can we be." Although I don't agree with this view, it's easy to rationalize if you take a completely militaristic, cynical stance.
I don't like it. I wouldn't want anyone to have that kind of power, let alone Obama.
I don't see a problem with it. If we actually have to shutdown the internet, chances are we're screwed in the first place. Besides, no President would be able to get away with misusing this power.
That's horrible... I can't believe he has the right to do something like that. D:
Quote from: Kianglo on June 30, 2010, 10:24:30 AM
That's horrible... I can't believe he has the right to do something like that. D:
would you be fine with it if a republican was in office? I agree with Grovyle, I have no problem with it
Actually, I commend the move; I am kind of disappointed it took this long to propose such a system. As Mikoyan pointed out, much information related to America's national security and financial interests is accessible through the Internet. In the event of a security breach, there needs to be a solution in place to protect said interests. I work in information security, and the first step in the event of a compromised computer is disconnecting from the network.
It's just common sense, politics notwithstanding. Scare tactics such as 'absolute control' are unreal; the article even notes that it is up to the services and ISPs to actually shut the thing down. Asides from that, you have to consider this is the informational equivalent of a nuclear weapon; misusing this feature would be absolute political suicide, no matter how one tries to spin it. ISPs are more likely to subject totalitarian rule on the Internet than the US government.
What sort of "crisis involving the internet" would actually require it to be shut down. I literally can't think of any situation where we'd be better off not having the internet. Certain websites maybe, but the whole internet?
That article is from the Daily Mail though. It's quite likely it's just sensationalist bullpoop vaguely based around a true story. Like one person has vaguely suggested it and they're all OMG THIS WILL ALMOST CERTAINLY HAPPEN.
Yeah, it's just proposed legislation; I doubt even the President knew about it until recently. Anyway, considering current cybersecurity threats, I can't foretell an event that would require shutting down the entire Internet; I imagine the intent of the 'killswitch' is to stop specific vulnerabilities. For example, if the Chinese manage to acquire sensitive information by hacking Google, then the President could order Google to shut down its services until the matter is resolved. The only thing I could think of that would constitute shutting down the entire system is in the event of a malevolent artificial intelligence.
Or what if an internet virus gets onto Google and everyone who goes on it will get the virus? They COULD shut down Google, but what happens if the virus gets onto Yahoo and (lol) Bing? A rapidly spreading virus wouldn't be stopped by just shutting down Google, would it?
And as already mentioned, if he DID screw it up, there goes the borderline Democrat/Republican population that was his.
I'm pretty sure they already left at this point.
Quote from: J on July 02, 2010, 12:15:19 PM
Or what if an internet virus gets onto Google and everyone who goes on it will get the virus? They COULD shut down Google, but what happens if the virus gets onto Yahoo and (lol) Bing? A rapidly spreading virus wouldn't be stopped by just shutting down Google, would it?
And as already mentioned, if he DID screw it up, there goes the borderline Democrat/Republican population that was his.
That's not how viruses work...