While debating whether our
Constitution does ( or does not ) provide for an individual citizen’s RIGHT to PRIVACY , it becomes necessary to also debate the following :
·
Should
larger “ Societal Good “ prevail over an individual’s right to privacy – especially if no violation of
dignity is involved ?
·
If I am unable to stop junk advts arriving in my physical mail box
( pamphlets / literature ) , should I feel offended with email such as :
“ Hey ! Since you are sending so many emails to Nandan Nilekani ,
would you like to read his book , “ Re-imagining India “ ? “
·
Can the world-wide
March of
Technology be stopped by India’s
Supreme Court
by
dictating , who cannot “ invent “ , what ?
Eg :
Without explicit permission from the person concerned :
# Smart phones which read human dreams and
“message “ to WhatsApp group
# Spectacles ( ala Google
Glass ) which allow wearer to take 1 hr videos of
anyone / anytime , walking on the road
and upload on the CLOUD
# Wrist bands which measure precise drug level in blood and
alert the Police
# Shirt-mounted Cameras
worn by Mumbai Police to capture video / audio of
traffic offenders
# RFID collars around the necks of prisoners on parole , to track
their
Movements
#
Currency Notes made of flexible / conducting Plastic , capable of
capturing the
finger-prints of every person who
handles it and then relaying that info to
Income Tax department
# TV sets that “ record and transmit “ , what
you are watching ( like web site
cookies ) . All you
did was to switch on the TV . Who said anything about
permission ?
# Clothes that you forgot to wear for 6 months
, announcing their own “ sale “
on E bay website (and
, without asking your permission , revealing what
private
under-clothes you wear , to entire world ! )
·
Can our Supreme Court tell :
# Zuckerberg > Don’t
deploy drones -lasers, beaming internet signals to Indians
# Sundar
Pichai > Scrap you Project LOON / Project Skybender ( 5G internet )
# ViaSat / Boeing > No beaming of 1Gbps internet from
satellites to Indians
# SpaceX / Virgin
Galactic > Keep your revolutionary internet tech to yourself
# Prof Jhunjhunwala
( IIT-M ) > Do not license , your invention that delivers
Internet signals using ordinary 220V domestic electrical outlet –
to Indians
# Satya Nadela > You are clearly
invading Privacy of Indians by launching your
Mobile App “ Seeing AI “ , described below :
“ Seeing AI “ can identify
things in your environment – people , objects and
Even EMOTIONS – to provide
important context for what’s going on around
you . The app is also good at reading text .
It can be used to take a picture
of the text .
THE APP CAN TELL YOU WHETHER
OR NOT PEOPLE ARE REALLY LISTENING
TO WHAT YOU ARE
SAYING
and ,
IT CAN DESCRIBE THE GENERAL AGE AND GENDER OF THE
PEOPLE AROUND YOU AS WELL AS THEIR EMOTIONS
·
Can our Supreme Court prevent foreign companies – and
foreign individuals ( over whom , it has no jurisdiction ) – from entering
into “ Delivery Contracts “ with Indian
Citizens to deliver “ Services or even Goods “ , over the Internet ? - contracts
requiring that Indian Citizen to surrender his PERSONAL / PRIVATE information
willingly – and agreeing that the same can be used in ANYWAY ! )
·
If such Foreign Companies ( or Individuals ) were to obtain
from those Indian Citizens , a “ Waiver “ for all / any kind of litigation /
damages , can Indian Judiciary still
intervene and prosecute such Foreign Companies / Individuals ?
How many will you sue ? And where ?
·
And what about PRIVATE / PERSONAL information about Indian Citizens , already
available on the internet that ANYONE can scrap and even sell to others ?
To know the extent of this issue , in Google , just
type :
“ Database Vendors in India “ ( Which of these 58.4 LAKH , will you sue ? )
·
What about PERSONAL / PRIVATE information
that tomorrow’s ( - already here ! ) technology will “ ACQUIRE WITHOUT ASKING “ , an
individual’s permission ?
While debating these LARGER ISSUES ( - which will decide whether
RIGHT TO
PRIVACY , is implementable or not ), I urge the Honourable Judges
to consider the following :
·
Microsoft / Google / Amazon etc have started selling
devices ( ASSISTANTS ) , which sit on your desk and
answer many of your ( so far , simple ) questions and carry out ( so far ,
simple ) instructions,
But ,
These have
started OBSERVING
your every movement and LISTENING
to your every SPOKEN WORD
and relaying to the CLOUD
!
It is only a matter of time before EVERY SMART PHONE sold in the market ,
is capable of all of these things – and MORE ! ( Eg : reading your THOUGHTS and relaying to CLOUD !
Pl read :
·
Already, Mobile
Apps come embedded with AI powered
ALGORITHMS , which tell you :
# What to BUY – and from WHERE
# The right TIME to invest , HOW much and in
WHICH equity / investment
( - without
asking you to provide your PRIVATE / PERSONAL
information )
·
By next year , you will be
able to buy a REFRIGERATOR , which will place orders
for food ( of course , without asking you ) on your Super Market , based on
keen observation of your EATING HABITS ( - some would consider ,
PRIVATE ? )
Who knows , before long , that computer
database of the Super Market ( which
has stored all of your food preferences )
, will deliver food without your fridge
ordering – and even recommend to your friends ,
what you have been eating !
I have no doubt that in the years to come
, our devices / appliances will take over
more and more decisions of our life , just
by observing us 24*7 !
·
Self Driving cars will come
to a sudden stop if you happen to cross the road and save your life,
But ,
It’s camera ( which noticed you /
photographed you ) will know precisely WHO
you are , WHERE you live , WHAT you do ! Of course , without asking for your
details ! Who cares
as long as you are not over-run !
·
As a citizen , you expect the Government to provide COMPREHENSIVE HEALTH –
CARE , throughout your life
That would require ( apart from
issuing an AADHAAR id at birth ) , collection
of following , about each new born (
- and “ about to be born “ as well ? ) :
#
Details of both , Father and Mother
# Stem Cell samples / DNA- GENOME mapping
# Blood Group data – Blood Chemistry –
Pathological Test Data
# Height – Weight – Colour –
Retina Scan
# ECG – EEG – Respiratory Data –
CT Scan – X Ray
# Vaccination Details…..etc
Would you / should you raise PRIVACY CONCERNS , if
Government decides that
any Doctor or Hospital treating you
during your entire life , can
access your data
over internet ?
Or , the next door “ Chemist Shop “
deliver to you that “ Customized Medicine “ at
the right instance in your life’s
journey ?
·
Find some more arguments ( for withdrawing “ life support system “ to a patient suffering from a terminal illness ) , read :
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23
July 2017
