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Month: November 2010

ICO Issues First Fines But Scares No-One – UPDATED

Published by Jamie on November 24, 2010

If the news that the Information Commissioner’s Office has levied its first fines  is supposed to scare people and organisations into being ethical, compliant with the law, using common sense and following sensible IT security precautions then I’m afraid the ICO is deluded.

Remember that the ICO is complicit in the mass privacy breaches by BT and Phorm in their secret and illegal testing.  The ICO did nothing to prevent this from happening.  The ICO now says that it doesn’t need technical expertise for its role.  I say that is bulls**t. The ICO needs technical expertise as much as it needs legal expertise.  Its abysmal perphormance in the Phorm phiasco proves that it does.

Continue reading ICO Issues First Fines But Scares No-One – UPDATED

Home Office RIPA Consultation – Inept? Incompetent? Can’t Be Arsed?

Published by Jamie on November 17, 2010

Like that fart you work your cheeks to get out silently so your grandparents don’t chastise you for breaking wind, the Home Office have snook out a consultation paper on amendments to the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA).

You know, the one BT and Phorm violated multiple times in their secret and illegal tests.

You know, the one the Metropolitan Police were too thick to understand.

You know, the one the Crown Prosecution Service don’t seem to comprehend either.  How many days is it now? 765?

Deadline for consultation responses is 7th December.  It wasn’t put on the public consultations page until today.

Continue reading Home Office RIPA Consultation – Inept? Incompetent? Can’t Be Arsed?

The Grauniad Lacks Clue on The #DEAct?

Published by Jamie on November 17, 2010

The recent report by The Guardian about the Judicial Review into the Digital Economy Act seems to be little more than a whining board for those proponents of the legislation who are annoyed by the prospect of the review.  The comments after the article say as much. This is my brief (ish) summary of how the DEA came into being & how supporters of the legislation are behaving.  I don’t know if The Guardian has forgotten to mention some of the other salient facts or just missed them out for a word limit so here they are.

Continue reading The Grauniad Lacks Clue on The #DEAct?

#Twitterjoketrial Thoughts

Published by Jamie on November 12, 2010

By the deties there has been a huge lack of Clue going on this week.  There have been a few things that have got my goat this week and the one at the top of the pile has incensed me so that not even hearing my favourite album (Rising by Rainbow) has settled my spirit.

What is it that has riled me so and come top of the Lack of Clue pile by some distance?

Judge Jacqueline Davies at Doncaster Crown Court is who has raised my ire.  Her upholding of the verdict against Paul Chambers in what has become known as the #TwitterJokeTrial beggars belief in my sincerely held opinion.

Simply put, there is no word whether polite or profane, bluster or blasphemous which can adequately describe the unbelievable level of stupidity that Judge Davies’ verdict demonstrates.  I may only be a layman and not have the elegance, persuasiveness and knowledge of legal people but I know something half-witted when I see it. And this verdict takes the Lamb Kebab for half-wittedness.

Continue reading #Twitterjoketrial Thoughts