CISPA is a bill that just a few days ago passed the house of representatives. This bill would allow for sharing of private information between corporations (such as Facebook, Google and Twitter) and the U.S. government during or before a suspected cyber attack.
Sounds okay when I state it like that but when you couple it with the Patriot Act (which says under a state of emergency the government can declare martial law), you allow the government to have control over your data. Many have said this bill is much like how the Russian or Chinese government runs the internet. CISPA is so vague that it could literally limit the 1st and 4th amendment. It allows for wiretapping and sharing of “your” information without warrant. It also says that it can shut down websites because of copyright violations. Example: Your website has a picture of the dad from Family Guy. You can be shut down and taken off of the internet! Just me saying Family Guy in this blog could be looked at as infringement Being that we (U.S.) are a pillar for the 1st amendment and a backbone of the internet, I just don’t see this as a good idea.
Luckily, as I was writing this article CISPA stalled before the final vote into law. The White House said they would veto this bill if it came to that. They cite that the bill still does not efficiently address concerns. The Obama Administration says they will be looking to new bills to address these concerns.
If you would like to learn more about CISPA and other online privacy bills you can visit the links below:
The Verge – The White House Responds to CISPA