Controversial government plans to allow Jobcentre staff to “order” benefit claimants to undergo tests for drug and alcohol dependency are in breach of European law and unlikely to work, according to leading addiction charities. The proposals, outlined in the welfare reform bill, which is due before the House of Lords next month, are part of…
Category: Surveillance
Sweat Becomes Offenders’ New Snitch
Fredrick Kunkle and Derek Kravitz report: The government has buried its nose in Bari Lynne Williams’s personal business. Almost literally. Twenty-four hours a day, whether she’s jogging, sleeping or managing a pool hall, Williams wears a high-tech sensor on her ankle that can detect the faintest whiff of alcohol in her perspiration. If she sneaks…
Privacy and the 2010 Olympics
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada has created a web page to address privacy concerns and the 2010 Olympics: Next February and March, Canada will host the world at the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. As the first international “mega-event” to take place in Canada in the post-9/11 era, the Vancouver Winter Games…
German secret services want more powers after election
The Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper has revealed a leaked Interior Ministry document which appears to suggest an expansion of the German secret service as part of the Christian Democrats’ post-election program. The document, which is dated Sept. 22 and headed “Coalition Paper Preparation”, suggests giving the secret services the authority to conduct online computer searches, access…