The Vancouver Province: Let’s stand up to Big Brother

The Vancouver Province: Let’s stand up to Big Brother

One of the joys of living in the Internet age is the personal freedom it offers people to enjoy the amazing amount of information now available through everything from computer laptops to cellphones and other electronic devices.

But now it seems that freedom is about to end.

Ottawa is worried about “pirates” purloining copyright material from artists, inventors and investors.

As The Province reported yesterday, the government is secretly negotiating a global pact on copyright infringement that could force Internet service providers to hand over customer information without a court order.

Called the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, or ACTA, it could well prove a nightmare for ordinary
Canadians — turning border and other security guards into copyright cops who check laptops, iPods and even cellphones for “pirated” CDs and movies.