Nobody wants to live in a glass house. We enjoy our privacy too much. Unfortunately, everything you do online may as well exist in a metaphorical glass house because it is monitored by Palantir Technologies. They are working with the government to make digital privacy a dying breed and secure messaging apps might be one of your last hopes for privacy.
Palantir Technologies is the “seeing stone”
Everyone knows Google and Facebook have a monopoly on Big Data, using it to better understand consumers. But, they aren’t the only ones. Palantir Technologies also analyzes Big Data, but not for consumer purposes. Unlike Google and Facebook, Palantir Technologies analyzes data for the U.S. Government – providing them with valuable information on the public.
One of their programs, Palantir Gotham, is a counter-terrorism initiative in which they collect and analyze data including people’s schooling, family relationships, employment information, phone call and message records, personal connections, biometric traits, criminal records, etc…to predict and prevent acts of terrorism.
However, they don’t stop at terrorism. Palantir Technologies also created FALCON which analyzes data from a controversial law enforcement database called Black Asphalt. Black Asphalt provides information to help police engage in civil and criminal asset forfeiture. FALCON is the tool which gives actionable insights to law enforcement. But, it operates in a legal gray area (leaning towards the illegal side of things). As a result, states like Iowa and Kansas have prohibited the use of Black Asphalt by law enforcement agencies.
You have no choice…they monitor you. Palantir’s algorithms analyze every text message sent, web search typed, and phone call made.
We’ve all joked around with friends that “The government is watching you, so be careful.” Well, it’s never been truer.
Not to worry. You’re a model citizen, right?
Of course, you are. Just be careful who you associate yourself with because these government watchlists are pretty comprehensive.
There’s a common saying, “I know a guy” or “I know a guy who knows a guy.” Well, chances are “that guy” is into some shady things and you are connected to him. Think about the Six Degrees of Separation trick, that you can link yourself to Kevin Bacon…so imagine who else exists in your network as a friend of a friend, like Tom from Myspace.
Even if you never plan on threatening the government, housing an illegal immigrant, committing credit card fraud, thieving someone’s identity, evading taxes, etc…you can still be associated as an accomplice.
Naturally, they watch some of us more than others. Kind of like elementary school. Generally, the teacher kept an eye on a few kids that always acted out. The teacher watched everyone. But, those that got themselves on the teacher’s watchlist couldn’t get away with nearly half of what the other kids got away with.
Same thing here, except the stakes, are much higher.
Find digital privacy with secure messaging apps
Bringing digital privacy to your communication with secure messaging is the first step towards avoiding a full-force, government-monitored state.
Signal is an encrypted communication service that offers secure text messaging, voice calling, and even video calling. It allows you to use your current phone number and address book, so there isn’t anything hard about switching.
Even media companies have been using Signal to communicate with their teams to avoid government scrutiny over controversial stories.
Plus, this gives you an opportunity to be the cool guy/gal that sets others on a trend. Next time your conversation with friends or associates starts drifting towards government and digital privacy, bring up Signal and its secure messaging features.
Overall, Going off the grid completely is pretty difficult, but secure messaging is a step in the right direction.
You don’t have to sacrifice all of your digital privacy for physical safety. That’s just the way the government frames the conversation.
When the bad disguises the good
For millennia, Chinese philosophers have taught the lesson of yin and yang. Good and evil forces coexisting in all of Nature.
Whether you believe they are interdependent or not, the yin-yang concept teaches us to find the good in a bad situation or to be a skeptic when something seems too good to be true.
The RZA, leader of famous hip-hop group the Wu-Tang Clan and lifelong philosopher says, “Your allies can arrive as enemies, blessings as a curse.”
If you are a creative, your biggest critic may actually be your biggest fan – commenting so you strive to become better. In business, the manager that grills you the hardest probably sees the potential in you.
We must learn to analyze situations for more than their face value. The deeper you dig to uncover the whole truth, the better equipped you’ll be for life’s challenges.
Personally, I created Quick Theories to get around the surface truth of technology news, which is always selling you the “next big revolution in innovation”. Quick Theories might not be the whole truth of technology, but it peels back another layer so you can better understand modern technology’s impact on your future.
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Hi QU
All very well to offer the secure apps, but, don’t forget, the very people that the government is following also reads your blog. This causes an ever increasing spiral. Where does it end?
Incidentally, the leading story on Israel’s most circulated newspaper deals with NSA’s ability (among others) to break into smart TVs… but Big Brother’s is a two-edged sword: we will continue to have technology enabling hackers (friends and foes…) to keep the dam leaking.
‘… the yin yang concept teaches us to find the good in a bad situation or to be a skeptic when something seems too good to be true’. Good reminder!
And – being a creative – ‘your biggest critic may actually be your biggest fan’. I recently asked a circle of my contacts for a critique of my new website and I really wanted criticism!
As per latest news (wikileaks), Signal ain’t safe.
You are semi-correct Kostas. The app itself is still un-crackable.
However, on Android phones, the government can monitor text and voice before it is encrypted…as if they were standing over your shoulder while you type / talk.