In recent weeks there has been a lot of conversation about hacking and privacy rights in general. Thanks to celebs like Jennifer Lawrence having their nude photos stolen and then leaked for the entire world to see it has made many reconsider the privacy laws that are already in existence. It also might be time to reconsider just how private some of the internet services that many use really are. When thinking of internet security it seems logical that the man who was able to breach government security would also be one of the best sources to explain how everyday people can protect themselves.
Apparently the New Yorker Festival agreed as they did a remote interview with Edward Snowden that totally covered the topic of personal privacy. He explained that our rights really aren't negotiable and having nothing to hide isn't a reason to give those rights away.
"When you say, 'I have nothing to hide,' you're saying, 'I don't care about this right.' You're saying, 'I don't have this right, because I've got to the point where I have to justify it.' The way rights work is, the government has to justify its intrusion into your rights."
What about those programs that we all use like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram? Snowden suggests we get rid of those as well as some file sharing programs.
"We're talking about encryption. We're talking about dropping programs that are hostile to privacy. For example, Dropbox? Get rid of Dropbox, it doesn't support encryption, it doesn't protect your private files. And use competitors like SpiderOak, that do the same exact service but they protect the content of what you're sharing."
What are your thoughts on taking privacy advice from a guy like Snowden? Do you think that he truly is an advocate for personal privacy and safety or do you think that he had ulterior motives that ultimately are the reason this NSA leaker is currently exiled in Russia? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!
