Privacy is more important than safety - Essay Example

Privacy is more important than safety Overview With the current technological advancement, it is essential to safeguard against theft of personal and private information. While business transactions are being done on-line, there is an urgent need to maintain privacy of the electronic data involved in any on-line banking transaction. For example, the password used for opening our e-mail accounts can be hacked and this may result in misuse of our personal details along with passwords for any e-commerce or banking transactions.

Similarly, the information required for on-line security transactions is very sensitive and if the privacy of such account details is not maintained, it can lead to severe losses. Hence, privacy has taken precedence over safety, when talking about the inherent dangers.(Grabianowski, How the patriot act works) USA Patriot Act In view of the above, US patriot Act was passed in Oct. 2001, which has the features of Federal Communications Privacy Law. The purpose of this act is protecting the confidentiality of private communications, including exchange of information over the computer systems.

In addition, the law provides for maintaining the confidentiality of private telephone conversations, while the act ensures that the authorities are able to identify criminal communications. Accordingly, the Act provides tracing orders for electronic communications, while permitting authorities to intercept communications, mainly for the purpose of identifying terrorists’ communications and activities. However, the same act can invade the privacy of innocent people as law enforcement agencies may misuse the powers, granted under this law.

In addition, advanced computer technology can itself be the reason for invading anybody’s privacy. For example, personal details provided by anyone on social sites like facebook and twitter is available to all and can easily fall into wrong hands.(Doyle, 2002) Hence, it is essential to have a balanced view of privacy and safety so that each is given its due importance, as both are necessary for maintaining perfect harmony. WORKS-CITED Doyle Charles, 2002, “The US Patriot Act: A Sketch”, retrieved on 9th Dec 2010 from: http://www.fas.org/irp/crs/RS21203.

pdf Grabiabianowski Ed, “How The Patriot Act Works”, retrieved on 9th Dec 2010 from: http://people.howstuffworks.com/patriot-act3.htm