It’s a question you may need to consider as the federal government ramps up legislation which will make it easier for agencies to gather intelligence.

Already Australian state and federal police have the power to compel telcos and internet service providers to retain the internet records of people suspected of cyber-based crimes, including fraud and child pornography.

Many internet providers already store user data on some levels.

As has been mooted previously by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation and the Federal Police, and again this week as the government reactivated the debate, the next step would be to extend the data retention period to up to two years. 

Such an extension of current provisions would create suspicion because it raises too many what ifs. Who can access the data? When can it be accessed? And on what grounds?

If someone is suspected of being a terrorist - most would suggest that is an appropriate reason. But what if solely the person has a particular religious affiliation? What about on the basis of a person’s political leanings? His or her sexuality? A person’s support for a particular sporting organisation?

In effect, everyone is treated as a criminal. A system based on internet use which is deemed by a person or authority to be indicative of a potential action. Not everyone will have a colourful history online, but it’s called a web for a reason - you’ll get in a tangle every now and again.

The Big Brother mentality which exists in modern society knows no bounds. Your right to privacy is being challenged, online, in public and at home. 

Where it will stop, only the government really knows.

Innocent Australians caught amid warfare

THE horrendous shooting down of Malaysian Flight MH17 above disputed Ukrainian territory will sit uncomfortably next to the Bali bombings as an example of Australians caught innocently, and tragically, amid modern warfare.

That a commercial flight would be targeted, seemingly by just plain negligence, exposes the futility of armed conflict. The sophistication and intelligence so much a part of our everyday life is obsolete when placed in the hands of those whose beliefs and actions override any necessity to rely upon rational thought or behaviour.

Those responsible for this atrocity deserve ultimate condemnation and penalties. 

If, as suggested yesterday, these actions were aided and abetted by a broader state then we can expect nothing other than a mobilisation against such interests.

When this does occur, the memory of the futility of war which has created this immense destruction should remain central in the actions which flow against the perpetrators.

andrew.eales@fairfaxmedia.com.au