RE: The Times: Cloned e-passports fiasco renews calls for £4.7bn ID card scheme to be axed

[James Firth]

> <SNIP> 

The Times has run a flurry of articles relating to IT security implications
and data privacy of late, including a piece that effectively concludes no
data is safe:

Don't be naive: computers will never be secure
Hackers will always beat security systems
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/ar=
tic
le4474092.ece

The Telegraph is also chipping in, with a series of "exposés" on RIPA and
recently flight manifest data.

Not to suggest that this is politically motivated in any way, but are the
conservatives positioning themselves as protectors of civil rights in a
digital age, along David Davis' lines (despite his off-script action)?

Radio 4 this morning reminded me of a Russian proverb:

"Dwell on the past and you’ll lose an eye. Forget the past and you’ll lose
both eyes."

I very much see this as relevant to anti-terrorism efforts and related
civil/digital privacy rights.  It's very easy for the government to say they
must collect and analyse a lot of personal communications data (else we may
lose an eye), however if we do continue down this path... we may lose both.