Being safe on the internet (was Re: Here we go again - ISP DPI, but is it interception?)

[James Firth]

> Yes.  Is this supposed to be something that requires deep thought?

Clearly so.

I'm a believer in small state - I don't think the state needs to be involved
as a first resort in so many areas of life.  Society is surprising capable,
to a degree, of organising its own affairs with an excellent degree of
fairness and democracy, given a robust legislative framework and judicial
backstop.

This has proved to be the case to date with the internet.  Structures
outside of government with very few real powers have emerged to deal with
the organisational issues of managing the global network across
jurisdictions.

Cyber crime happens because it's currently easy.  It would happen far less
if it were less so.  The best way to prevent hacking is to build reliable
systems, not a police state.

But many thanks for your own thoughts on police involvement as a first
resort.  I look forward to the day when the UK has enough dedicated police
resources to deal with every CMA transgression and the necessary safeguards
in place to protect misuse of this vast army of cyber police by the
incumbent government for its own ends.

James Firth