The recent seizure of online black market website "Silk Road" and the arrest of its alleged owner, Ross Ulbricht, has brought the federal government under fire from certain internet circles. Still smarting from recent revelations of so called "domestic spying" by the NSA, civil liberties activists are accusing the federal government of using the arrest as a way to further its alleged anti-privacy agenda. However, it is important to understand that Mr. Ullbricht is simply just another criminal. The charges brought against him in two different states include conspiracy to traffic narcotics, money laundering, conspiracy to murder a witness, and attempt to procure "murder for hire" (Ullbricht allegedly paid a federal agent to kill a rival.). Mr. Ullbricht is no crusader for internet freedom; he is merely a common criminal looking to turn a profit by facilitating the overtly criminal activities of others. The indictment brought against Ullbricht is not an indicator of a tyrannical federal government, but of a legitimate need to act against those who live in blatant and irresponsible contempt of the law. The seizure of his website also brought into the spotlight Tor, an internet engine designed to facilitate anonymity on the web, and Bitcoin, an internet currency that is seen as a way to enable anonymous and easy monetary transactions online (but also seems to be laying the groundwork for tax evasion and money laundering amongst other things.)
What do you think about the government's intent in indicting Ullbricht? How about calls for greater regulation of the internet anonymity in light of this criminal activity?
Also food for thought: Is the internet a right? Does it bring with it a certain right to anonymity and enhanced privacy? Keep in the mind that the internet is a service provided by commercial interests and that anonymity may not be considered a reasonable expectation outside of the computer world...
2 comments:
In my opinion, the current freedom we enjoy for Internet use is definitely a standard. Crime is by no means a right, but Internet users are so accustomed to having the freedom that anonymity becomes a reasonable expectation.
I also read some news a few days ago and thought it was pretty interesting. Numerous other individuals/groups seem to have projects under way for new silk roads.
http://atlantisblog.org/silk-road-subdued-but-this-ex-blackmarket-employee-believes-they-only-released-a-monster/
What strikes me is that so much money can be spent attempting to subdue these criminals when a new crop simply springs up overnight. The government surely understands this, but its agenda on Internet privacy and such have been difficult to interpret as of late.
I was intrigued by the use of internet web browsers like Tor which was used by Ross Ulbricht for the Silk Road. One of my friends figured out how to download it and even the it stated on the front page that it was against selling hackings and illegal substances, one could make a few clicks and find shrooms, heroin, and even ecm jammers.
I am all for the current freedom we have just like Brandon said, but I think the criminal activity on the internet will come closer to an end since it's so hard to tell who you are communicating with on this deep web. On web browsers like tor, IP address' can not be traced, so it is completely anonymous. But one does not know if they are buying from a dealer, or a fake FBI agent.
The last month we have seen more sites like Silk Road pop up and close down because of the difficulty of the anonymity online black market .
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