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Hi tech spying debacle continues

The GCSB uses all sorts of clever tech (and probably a lot of rather unclever tech) to spy on a wide array of communications traffic that rattles through the airwaves and cables in and around NZ.

According to the legislation that governs their activities, they're not supposed to spy on NZ residents.

However, as we've seen, they haven't exactly been following the law of late and I wonder if I am one of the possible 85 other cases where they've unlawfully (illegally?) spied on NZ residents.

I wonder this because in this report it is alleged that "the secretive Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) may have spied on 85 New Zealanders illegally" over the past decade.

Perhaps this explains very clearly why it was, when (about a decade ago) I went to the SIS with some rather worrying communications I'd received in respect to my LCCM project, they seemed to already be very much aware of the content of those emails.

Was the GCSB monitoring my communications and reading my email?

Well I'm not going to make any accusations - but such a possibility would explain a lot of the very strange "coincidences" that seemed to be taking place at that time.

I wonder if there is any compensation for victims of this type of illegal activity?

Yeah, right!

But on the same subject, I also read this report today, in which it states "If the report establishes a leak, the GCSB's legislation carries a penalty of up to two years in prison".

Now let me see if I can get my head around this...

If someone "whistle-blows" about stuff-ups at GCSB, they can face a two-year prison sentence -- yet those who conducted the *illegal* spying get off without sanction?

What the?

Is the government telling us that the people who have this immense power to spy on each and every one of us are controlled merely by directives such as "please behave and don't abuse your power" -- while those who expose their illegal activities are thrown in prison for their sins?

I'm sorry but I think this is a situation that has to change.

It would appear that, just like every other government in the Western World, ours has decided that they can use alleged "security" threats to ride roughshod over the principles of natural justice, accountability and human rights.

Hang on, isn't that the reason *we* joined in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan?

Isn't it about time we had a "war against hypocrisy?"

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