antihacker law / defending freedom and anonymity on the web
A society can remain free only if it allows its members to express themselves freely, and that includes the right to anonymity. Consider this: why do all authoritarian regimes keep extensive records on their citizens? Why is one of the first acts of a dictatorship to extend its control over all means of communication?
Precisely to prevent the free exchange of ideas.
Anonymity means doing things without anyone knowing who you are. When you buy something with cash, your purchase is anonymous. Actually, cash is only one part of the solution. The store might have a camera take a picture of you at the check-out counter; in that case, the police could look at the tape later and your purchase wouldn't be completely anonymous. Still, cash makes you more anonymous than a credit card purchase, which lets your bank know what you bought. There are different levels of anonymity; different amounts of privacy protection you get in different situations.
It might be hard for people in relatively open societies to understand the importance of anonymity. But think: why is voting anonymous in democracies? Why shouldn't each voter'sa vote be identified? Precisely to protect citizens from pressure and meddling by the powerful and devious. So that you can make your choice without fear of retribution.
What would it be like if any communication on the Internet could be fully identified? Who would benefit? The spammers and crackers, who would have full access to our digital footprints. They would know even the time of day we are surfing the web and, with geo-processing tools, they could even determine in what part of the world we are.
Associating you with your Internet communications would be a boon for companies that sell information to the pharmaceutical, insurance and advertising industry, as well as other monopolies that do everything they can to control our likes and dislikes.
Without anonymity, our information can be easily cross-referenced. Someone could put together a report that combines the likes and dislikes you publish on a social network, the web sites you surf, the music you buy, and even what other people say about you online. Businesses could figure out a lot about you! And we would all be increasingly submitted to despotism and abuse from authorities and politicians. In the old Soviet Union, people who had typewriters at home had to register them at the police station. That seems like ancient history today, but the Internet could make things even worse. Withouth anonymity, governments would know what you're typing.
The society of control represents only the interests of authoritarianism. The defense of democracy and freedom on the web also requires the defense of anonymity.
Ian Clarke, a young hacker who created Freenet, after explaining why he had created a decentralized communication solution designed to prevent control of thoughts and expression, wrote why he believed anonymity is necessary. This is what he had to say: