The iPhone 5 S, Big Brother’s dream phone…
I’ve got a tech savvy friend who’s my “go to guy” on privacy issues and how they relate to technology. And when Apple came out with the iPhone 5s and my friend saw that it would be only operate after scanning the owner’s fingerprints – alarm bells went off.
And for good reason.
The iPhone 5s will still be providing GPS location data and employing several apps which datamine all sorts of information which in turn, is transmitted to the government and corporations. But now your biometric information, your fingerprints and facial structure, will be stored in a database and exploited accordingly.
I know this phone is just supposed to be operated with your fingerprints, so how did I make the leap to your facial structure/biometrics being stored?
This is how the conversation began:
I have an iPad One, which is a fossil in the world of technology, I know, but it’s the only one that does not have a built-in camera, much like my circa 2003 Mac G4 Titanium PowerBook.
What can I say? I’ve been paranoid for a very long time and don’t like the idea of having any webcams remotely operated and watching me in my home. I went to download a very popular game called “Plants vs. Zombies 2” having already mastered part 1. But I was told that the app could not be downloaded because my iPad did not have a camera.
OK, why does a video game need to watch me play?
My tech guru friend said that the feds along with their private contractor buddies are in cahoots and building giant databases that will store all our biometric information. But that what they’ve been missing is fingerprint data to go along with their facial recognition software.
So voila!
Get millions of people in the name of personal security to turn over their fingerprints. I love these guys! They are going to get you to fork over hundreds of dollars for a device that is fast becoming the “Eye of Sauron.”
So what’s the big deal?
Biometric authentication can be hacked. My friend prognosticated that anyone can hack into Apple’s databases and come away with copies of your fingerprints, along with all your other identifying information that will inevitably be stored with it. And with a good enough printer, then access your iTunes account and go on shopping sprees there and steal your credit card data and continue on to more advanced forms of identity theft, causing you multiple headaches and possibly destroying your credit rating.
But that’s not what I’m worry about.
I saw the “Bourne Trilogy” of movies starring Matt Damon and there is a scene where Jason Bourne’s fingerprints are planted at the scene of a terrorist attack. You don’t think that certain entities don’t have that kind of technology? And wouldn’t hesitate to use it for nefarious purposes?
I mean, everything that was shown about the NSA’s capabilities in a 20-year old movie called “Enemy of the State” starring Gene Hackman and Will Smith courtesy of Edward Snowden has been shown to be true. So what if you were to somehow piss off the “Powers that Be”? The DEA is already using NSA information to go after dope dealers using illegally seized phone records.
What’s to stop the Government from going after anyone that gets in their way?
WE ARE SO DOOMED
I was in the theater watching one of the Bourne movies and there was a scene with this model cell phone,
http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/morenosoppelsa/morenosoppelsa1109/morenosoppelsa110900502/10486100-smartphone-cell-phone-over-a-old-book-with-ink-and-pen-a-smartphone-is-a-mobile-phone-offering-advan.jpg
(Very popular at the time, I had one.) adhered to a wall with maybe 6 other cell phones just like it. Some high tech horror was counting down and the culmination of the scene would be all of these cell phones dialing each other and other places, working in conjuction for a planned response. I never talk outloud in the movies and the place was packed. Like a parasympathetc response, myself and two or three other people said exactly the same thing at exactly the same time.
“That sh*t ain’t gonna work”.
We have no choice but to put our money on our better angels, you know, Pamela Landy and hope that cell phone technology, no matter how sophisticated is still overseen by the folks who don’t see a connection to terrorists on 9/11 at Bengazi.
Chuck you are a funny person.
Great response to a GREAT story!
Love your stuff DSW.
Yet another reason I don’t own one single Apple i-product
When you walk up to the counter at one of the finer stores and they already know who you are, call you by name, know where you live, how much you make, what kind of car you drive, how many kids, did that prostrate operation work, whether or not you can get it up now……….all because you walked in the door. Facial recognition linked to facebook, linkedin, twitter and all the others gave that store all of your life and you gave it all up to be cool.
Droid is worse than apple will ever be, don’t own any apple, they turn brown in the air, Google is getting it’s hands slapped with tiny fines for stealing info from your home yet you stay signed in cause it’s easier.
Sheep lead to the slaughter by their own hand.
I’m perhaps the least paranoid guy going, but never saw the reason to be so connected before and even less so now when I see shit like this. Not worried about the government or pinning a terrorist attack on me (I’m not brown-skinned), but realized a long time ago that this constant technological advancement is all about $ and in no way really makes our lives better. People that MUST HAVE this latest are total suckers, but suckers drive this our new fangled, productionless economy so who am I to bitch? I’ll just stick to my flip phone and old school message boards, thank you. You can wake me when they finally perfect the flying car as that is something that would truly improve my life, would be a lot more fun than playing Angry Birds and something I’ve been waiting for since promises made at the damn 1964 World’s Fair.