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A survey conducted pertaining to the UK’s divisive and alarming Investigatory Powers Bill has highlighted just how little many British citizens care about the impact it could have on their privacy.
The IP Bill, which has been dubbed the “Snooper’s Charter” as a result of the vast amount of personal information it could place in the hands of the Conservative government, has been widely criticised for its vagueness, with it potentially presenting a number of security backdoors in software that could leave UK citizens vulnerable to online attacks. It would also give the UK government an unprecedented level of access into the private lives of its population, with it forcing ISPs to store Internet connection records, along with granting government agencies the abilities to hack the devices and networks of their citizens.
But despite the likes of Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Twitter and Yahoo having stood up against the IP Bill, citing the “major implications” it will have on the security of UK citizens’ online data, a survey conducted by Broadband Genie has highlighted how few people know about this bill, and how little they care about impact it could have on their privacy. Of the 1,600 surveyed by the site, 75% said they had never heard of the IP Bill, while 33% answered “I don’t care” when asked whether or not they supported it. This is compared to the 36% who stated that they did support it, and the 31% who said they didn’t.
Apple CEO Tim Cook opposed granting the US government a security backdoor to iOS. (Image Credit: Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)
The survey was split down the middle when participants were asked whether they believed not implementing the bill placed the UK at a higher risk of a terrorist attack, with 51% answering yes and 49% answering no. 56% said they believed law enforcement should have a right to access encrypted communications and devices, similar to how the FBI recently broke into the iPhone of the San Bernardino shooter after controversially appealing to Apple to grant them a security backdoor.
Apple CEO Tim Cook penned an open letter following this court order, which spoke of the risks granting the government these measures posed to their customers. Cook stated that although the company wished to help the US government in its investigation, providing them with the tools to break into their iOS operating system made users more vulnerable to attacks from third-parties, without even touching upon how legally granting the government access to their users’ data presents its own site of wide-ranging privacy issues.
The IP Bill is currently in the Committee Stage at the House of Commons, after having been introduced for its First Reading by Tory MP Theresa May on March 1st. The Bill will next be considered by a Public Bill Committee.
