MI6 | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net KitGuru.net - Tech News | Hardware News | Hardware Reviews | IOS | Mobile | Gaming | Graphics Cards Mon, 13 Feb 2017 12:46:02 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://www.kitguru.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/cropped-KITGURU-Light-Background-SQUARE2-32x32.png MI6 | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net 32 32 Journalists who report leaked information could be jailed under amended act https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/featured-tech-news/jon-martindale/journalists-who-report-leaked-information-could-be-jailed-under-amended-act/ https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/featured-tech-news/jon-martindale/journalists-who-report-leaked-information-could-be-jailed-under-amended-act/#comments Mon, 13 Feb 2017 11:26:20 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=321552 The British government has announced plans to criminalise the practice of reporting on leaked documents, in an update of the Espionage Act. The move, which could see journalists jailed for as much as 14 years, is being called a campaign against whistleblowing, by detractors. Over the past few years, as surveillance of citizens has increased by …

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The British government has announced plans to criminalise the practice of reporting on leaked documents, in an update of the Espionage Act. The move, which could see journalists jailed for as much as 14 years, is being called a campaign against whistleblowing, by detractors.

Over the past few years, as surveillance of citizens has increased by countries like the U.S. and UK, leaks from whistleblowers and hackers have become much more common place. People like Edward Snowden and Chelsea manning have been criminalised for their revelatory acts, while journalists have aided them in getting the information out to the public. That may change in the future if the proposed tweaks to British law are made.

As it stands, the only criminal act involved in acquiring secretive government or corporate information is the process of stealing it away in the first place. There are supposed to be laws in place to protect those who do so in the the name of public interest. In the UK, there is the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998. President Obama too promised to protect whistleblowers early in his presidency, though he prosecuted more than any of his predecessors.

Mi5 and Mi6 were both consulted when drafting the legislative changes. Source: Robert Lamb/Geograph

Britain doesn't have quite such a history of targeting whistleblowing, but is looking to cut off avenues for their documents to be published with these proposed changes to journalistic freedom. Even leaking something relating to the proposed Brexit plans, could theoretically fall foul of the proposed law changes. It even seems to cover anything to do with British “economic well-being,” which is vague enough to cover a wide range of issues.

The Telegraph quotes leading human rights barrister, John Cooper, in saying that any such law changes would: “undermine some of the most important principles of an open democracy.”

With little oversight of government surveillance as it is, the concern if such a legislative change is made, is that it could effectively remove any safeguards against government overreach, as there would be far less fear of repercussions in the court of public opinion.

Jim Killock, head of the Open Rights Group said in a statement:

“It is clearly an attempt to criminalise ordinary journalism. The idea seems to be to criminalise the act of handling leaked documents which would prevent the public from knowing when the government is breaking the law.”

He even called the matter “un-British”

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Theresa May really does love the idea of a 1984 future. Unmetered surveillance and now no way to hold those who commit crimes in the upper echelons of power to account. 

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UK Diplomat: Snowden revelations didn’t endanger spies https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/uk-diplomat-snowden-revelations-didnt-endanger-spies/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/uk-diplomat-snowden-revelations-didnt-endanger-spies/#comments Mon, 15 Jun 2015 10:20:27 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=254573 Members of the British intelligence community, including MI6, GCHQ and the Royal Navy took aim at Edward Snowden last week, calling him a traitor and suggesting that by revealing secretive CIA documents, he put the lives of British and American spies at risk. It was even claimed that due to the reveal of operating practices, …

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Members of the British intelligence community, including MI6, GCHQ and the Royal Navy took aim at Edward Snowden last week, calling him a traitor and suggesting that by revealing secretive CIA documents, he put the lives of British and American spies at risk. It was even claimed that due to the reveal of operating practices, US and UK spying was inhibited, since Russia and China could react accordingly. Now though, a British diplomat has come out to say that their claims are “nonsense.”

Craig Murray was once the British ambassador to Uzbekistan and he thinks that the drum beating by those involved in the intelligence agencies is overblown.

“The argument that MI6 officers are at danger of being killed by the Russians or Chinese is a nonsense,” he said. “Rule no.1 in both the CIA and MI6 is that identities are never, ever written down – neither their names or a description that would allow them to be identified.”

MURRAY
Murray was removed from his Ambassadorial position after criticising intelligence agencies over the use of torture

While it could be argued that former heads of GCHQ and other organisations would have a better understanding of intelligence practices, Murray isn't the only one that has suggested that their concerns are overblown. As the Mirror points out, Shami Chakrabarti, director of campaign group Liberty, which has been campaigning to block the Snooper's Charter, said that the recent Anderson report on spying laws in the UK would not have been possible without Snowden's revelations.

It also highlighted that Home Secretary Theresa May is currently pushing (once again) for the Snooper's Charter, so there is some precedent for attacking those that have challenged such intelligence agency oversight of the public's actions.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: It does seem like every time there is a major blow dealt to those that stand by governments spying on their own people, that those at least partially responsible hit back with suggestions that safety has been compromised and lives put at risk by airing the truth. While nobody denies that intelligence is important, it suggests a woeful disregard for the soul and purpose of national security, if every one of its citizens is considered as a potential threat. 

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Ex-MI5 intelligence officer: Britain ‘prostituting itself’ to NSA https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/ex-mi5-intelligence-officer-britain-prostituting-itself-to-nsa/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/ex-mi5-intelligence-officer-britain-prostituting-itself-to-nsa/#comments Mon, 27 Oct 2014 09:54:15 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=218593 Annie Machon, ex-member of the MI5 British Intelligence agency and partner of MI6 whistle blower, David Shalyer, who exposed investigations into British Politicians for socialist ties in the late 90s, has spoken out against the current climate of surveillance in Britain and the US. Not only did she claim that British MPs who parrot support …

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Annie Machon, ex-member of the MI5 British Intelligence agency and partner of MI6 whistle blower, David Shalyer, who exposed investigations into British Politicians for socialist ties in the late 90s, has spoken out against the current climate of surveillance in Britain and the US. Not only did she claim that British MPs who parrot support for it have no idea what they're talking about, but even went so far as to say that the British intelligence services “prostituted themselves,” to the USA.

“GCHQ has prostituted itself the the NSA to the tune of millions of dollars with no accountability or oversight,” she said (via the Guardian). “We live in an endemic surveillance state now. Politicians say ‘we know the intelligence agencies are working within the law and protecting, not eroding, our freedoms’. But politicians don’t have a bastard clue what spies can get away with and Britain is the least accountable of all the western intelligence agencies.”

Machon also touched on how this could come about though, suggesting that when you inhabit a world of surveillance, you lose touch with the fact that what you're observing is the real world, with real people in it. Describing her own time with MI5, she said: “When I first started reading transcripts of phone conversations it felt highly intrusive – information about their private lives and who they were having an affair with that even their families didn't know. It becomes god-like … a massive sense of dislocation from the real world.”

annie
Machon speaking in 2013 in Hamburg. Source: Wikimedia

This is something that we've seen echoed elsewhere, where NSA contractors and employees were found to be investigating their partners and potential love interests using the highly sophisticated snooping system to look into their private communications.

All of this came out during a talk by Machon at this year's Playful conference, which had a theme of “Hidden – what lies beneath?” During her talk, Machon said that there had been a real change in attitude at intelligence agencies (and to some extent in the public) over the past couple of decades. At one point she drew a comparison between a failed, but secretive, plan to assassinate Libyan Dictator Colonel Gaddafi in 1996, to the widely reported capture and death of him in 2011. She suggested that this was a “dangerous moral slide,” that the entire nation was taking.

Machon was however complimentary of whistle blower Edward Snowden. She likely empathises with his position, as she too – along with Shayler – spent several years in exile from her home.

Discuss on our Facebook Page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Quite a damning of British intelligence, but when they can snoop on anything and everything done online, it seems hard not to criticise a group with such omnipotence and so little oversight. Especially when the age and (dis)interest of politicians practically guarantees them not fully understanding the scope of the potential snooping being undertaken. 

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UK spy heads given public hearing Qs in advance https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/uk-spy-heads-given-public-hearing-qs-in-advance/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/uk-spy-heads-given-public-hearing-qs-in-advance/#respond Mon, 18 Nov 2013 09:32:15 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=162928 Heads of the British intelligence agencies MI5, MI6 and GCHQ were quizzed at a public hearing earlier this month, where they answered questions on the UK's spying activities. However it's now being suggested that all three organisations struck a deal to let them see the questions they would be asked before hand, allowing them not …

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Heads of the British intelligence agencies MI5, MI6 and GCHQ were quizzed at a public hearing earlier this month, where they answered questions on the UK's spying activities. However it's now being suggested that all three organisations struck a deal to let them see the questions they would be asked before hand, allowing them not to be surprised during the hearing.

The three men in question were Sir Ian Lobban, top dog at GCHQ, Andrew Parker from MI5 and John Sawers from MI6. Throughout the hour and a half session they were asked questions on a variety of different aspects of their joint and individual intelligence operations, but nothing seemed to phase them. The Sunday Times (via GloucestershireEcho) has cited sources that suggest one MP branded the entire event a “pantomime,” due to its lack of sincerity.

Security analyst and writer Charles Shoebridge was also questioned by PressTV, and said that he thought the entire event was well practised and rehearsed, perhaps even to the point of resembling a performance:

[yframe url='https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-XVI9YNP7Q']

Other MPs however have countered that while the intelligence heads had been briefed on what the broad areas of questioning would be, that they weren't given exact questions. Another, Malcolm Rifkind, seemingly defended the action, suggesting that: “We cannot put a question to an intelligence chief that they might only be able to answer by reference to secret material.”

spyingchiefs
I like that they all coordinated their ties. Couldn't have been blue, blue green. That would have been all wrong. 

Whilst not explicitly stated, this would suggest some sort of compliance with intelligence agency approved questioning, over potentially more invasive queries.

KitGuru Says: Did anyone watch the live broadcast of this? If so, what did you think of the way the three chief's behaved during the hearing?

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