Research Paper
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Ashyrov
Vepa Ashyrov
Professor Rebecca Sader
English 1302 : 81013
3 November 2017
Digital Bill of Rights and Online Privacy
The United States’ Bill of Rights was enacted to protect and advocate for individual liberties and as well limit the powers of the government as far as unwarranted searches are concerned. Privacy advocates emphasize the need for the government to create awareness and reeducate the citizens regarding the control measures that have been stemmed in the effort to collect security information from the people. As more of people’s private information becomes digitized and as more people become social media-saturated, the question arises as to what extent have the basic protections went in protecting the citizens from privacy breaches. For instance, what are the provisions of the First Constitutional Amendment and how much freedom does it grand government agencies as far as online content is concerned? More so, as people continue to use different communication platforms that have been presented by technology for our convenience, it is important to ask whether the digital communications such as emails are protected from unlawful seizers and searches under the Fourth Amendment (Mendel 128). Finally, how is the Fifth Amendment applied to medical information? According to Bill of Rights, people has rights to enjoy online freedom, security and unauthorized search and seizures.
Some people have raised concerns regarding whether the Second Amendment provisions provides the right to bear encryption. It is for this reason that they have called for additional legislations enacted after consideration of the changes the government internet access as a basic right also and more. In other words, a growing body of complaints and cases raise the question of the extent of protection that Americans have under the contemporary Bill of Rights. Further, how is the interpretation of these rights done when the internet and the modern technology, in general, is incorporated into the equation. It is on this basis that advocates for online protection have suggested Cyber Bill of Rights as essential to making sure that people have enjoyed online freedom and security (Kosseff 188). However, some people of a dissenting opinion have stated that America does not require a Cyber Bill of Rights but the lawmakers and law enforcement officers need to respond to critical questions concerning the consumer rights and entitlements in the digital age.
Particularly, they should examine the existing protections that are granted by the Bill of Rights and how they apply to online privacy in terms of the Fifth, Fourth and First Amendments. One of these questions include how the Fourth Amendment provisions on search and seizures apply when it comes to the increasing government security issues (Locke 25). The second one is the application of the Fifth Amendment when it comes to a situation whereby people are asked if they should turn over thumbprints or passwords when they are required by justice officers to do so.
There is a heated debate regarding what comprises a reasonable search and the operations that are being done by security officers in the United States today. The court, therefore, needs to revisit this matter and craft laws that ensure that all the actions and proceedings of security agencies are characterized by oversight and transparency (Raul 66). For instance, those searched should be told and made to understand what activities were done during the search and what happens to the information after the search is conducted. This is especially important because people have on many occasions complained of unreasonable searches and particularly when the scope of the search is considerably broad that no specific information is targeted (Fisher 44).
Works Cited
Raul, Alan. The Privacy, Data Protection and Cyber security Law Review, Law Business Research Ltd. 2014.
Locke, Gary. Cyber security, Innovation and the Internet Economy, The Department of Commerce. (2011).
Fisher, Mary Jo. The adequacy of protections for the privacy of Australians online. The Senate, 2011.
Kosseff, Jeff. Cyber security law. John Wiley & Sons, 2017.
Mendel, Toby. Global survey on Internet privacy and freedom of expression. United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, 2012.