`Govts web snooping plan fraught with danger`

There are enormous negatives associated with excessive government oversight of the Internet, feels Sir Tim Berners-Lee.

Sydney: Man credited with inventing the world wide web Sir Tim Berners-Lee has warned about the dangers posed by governments intent on increasing the level of monitoring and filtering of the online activity of its citizens. Sir Tim Berners-Lee said that he acknowledged the fact that it was important to fight serious organised crime and for a state to defend itself against cyber attack. But there were enormous negatives associated with excessive government oversight of the Internet, he added. Sir Tim`s remarks came while speaking at the launch of the CSIRO`s 40 million dollars Digital Productivity and Services Flagship, a research facility focused on facilitating the growth of the digital economy and exploiting the full potential of the National Broadband Network. According to the paper, the data retention proposal is part of the Australian government`s overhaul of national security measures and would require internet service providers (ISPs) and telecommunication carriers to store the internet history of all citizens for at least two years. Sir Tim pointed out that storing the information is `dangerous`, calling the plan `dynamite`. Sir Tim, who is visiting Australia for the first time in 15 years, also raised a red flag about web filtering, the paper said. He said he is `worried about a government that is liable to take too much control`. He also warned against the actions of a `government that has the ability to control what you see on the web.` ANI