- Over the last decade, Hollywood has sensitised
us to totalitarian technology. Block buster movies portray our heroes and
heroines using the weapons of the new millennium. Militarised police forces
keep citizens safe; android warrior personnel, part human, part robot are
gainfully employed as global peacekeepers; prisoners are incarcerated in
high tech electronic jails, controlled with implanted microchips, while
the free population is kept under surveillance through the use of biometric
identity systems.
-
- Science fiction perhaps? Reality yes!
Much of what we see on the big screen is not the latest fantasy of Hollywood
script writers, but is based on fact. Any film maker wanting a picture
of the future need look no further than existing military technology and
research.
-
- A recent report published by the European
Parliament, "An Appraisal of the Technologies of Political Control",
shows just how far these new technologies have come, and how they are being
actively employed against citizens in countries across the globe.
-
- The report warns of "an overall
technological and decision drift towards world wide convergence of nearly
all the technologies of political control", including identity recognition;
denial; surveillance systems based on neural networks; new arrest and restraint
methods and the emergence of so called `less lethal' weapons.
-
- Developments in surveillance technology,
innovations in crowd control weapons, new prison control systems, the rise
of more powerful restraint, torture, killing and execution technologies
and the role of privatised enterprises in promoting such technologies pose
a grave threat to our immediate and future freedoms.
-
-
- Trade in Technologies of Control
-
- Cutting edge developments made by the
Western military-industrial complex are providing invaluable support to
various governments throughout the world. The report "Big Brother
Incorporated", by surveillance watchdog Privacy International, presents
a detailed analysis of the international trade in surveillance technology.
-
- Privacy International says it is concerned
about "the flow of sophisticated computer-based technology from developed
countries to developing countries -- and particularly to non-democratic
regimes where surveillance technologies become tools of political control."
-
- The international trade in surveillance
technology (known as the Repression Trade), involves the manufacture and
export of technologies of political control. More than seventy per cent
of companies manufacturing and exporting surveillance technology also export
arms, chemical weapons or military hardware.
-
- The justification advanced by the companies
involved in this trade is identical to the justification advanced in the
arms trade -- i.e.: that the technology is neutral. Privacy International's
view is that in the absence of legal protection, the technology can never
be neutral.
-
- As "Big Brother Incorporated"
points out, "even those technologies intended for `benign' uses rapidly
develop more sinister purposes. The UK manufactured `Scoot' traffic control
cameras in Beijing's Tianamen Square were automatically employed as surveillance
cameras during the student demonstrations. Images captured from the cameras
were broadcast over Chinese television to ensure that the `offending' students
were captured."
-
- Privacy International cites numerous
cases where this type of technology has been obtained for the express purpose
of political and social control...
-
- -- ICL (International Computers Limited)
provided the technological infrastructure to establish the South African
automated Passbook system, upon which much of the function of the apartheid
regime depended.
-
- -- In the 1980s Israeli company Tadiram
developed and exported the technology for the computerised death list used
by the Guatemalan police.
-
- -- Reported human rights abuses in Indonesia
-- particularly those affecting East Timor -- would not be possible without
the strategic and technological support of Western companies. Among those
companies supplying the Indonesian police and military with surveillance
and targeting technology are Morpho Systems (France), De la Ruue Printak
(UK), EEV Night Vision (UK), ICL (UK), Marconi Radar and Control Systems
(UK), Pyser (UK), Siemens Plessey Defense Systems (UK), Rockwell International
Corporation (USA) and SWS Security (USA).
-
-
- Tools of Repression for 'Democratic'
States
-
- We should not forget that the same companies
supplying regimes with repression technology, also supply `democratic'
states with their totalitarian tools.
-
- Leutcher Associates Inc. of Massachusetts
supplies and services American gas chambers, as well as designing, supplying
and installing electric chairs, auto-injection systems and gallows. The
Leutcher lethal injection system costs approximately $30,000 and is the
cheapest system the company sells. Their electrocution systems cost £35,000
and a gallows would cost approximately $85,000. More and more US states
are opting for Leutcher's $100,000 "execution trailer" which
comes complete with a lethal injection machine, a steel holding cell for
an inmate, and separate areas for witnesses, chaplain, prison workers and
medical personnel. Some companies in Europe have even offered to supply
gallows.
-
- In the 1970's, J.A. Meyer of the US Defense
Department suggested a countrywide network of transceivers for monitoring
all prisoners on parole, via an irremovable transponder implant. The idea
was that parolees movements could be continuously checked and the system
would facilitate certain areas or hours to be out of bounds, whilst having
the economic advantage of cutting down on the costs of clothing and feeding
the prisoner. If prisoners go missing, the police could automatically home
in on their last position.
-
- Meyer's vision came into operational
use in America in the mid 1980's, when some private prisons started to
operate a transponder based parole system. The system has now spread into
Canada and Europe where it is known as electronic tagging. Whilst the logic
of tagging is difficult to resist, critics argue that the recipients of
this technology appear not to be offenders who would have been imprisoned,
but rather low risk offenders who are most likely to be released into the
community anyway. Because of this, the system is not cheaper since the
authorities gain the added expense of supplying monitoring devices to offenders
who would have been released anyway. Electronic tagging is however beneficial
to the companies who sell such systems. Tagging also has a profitable role
inside prisons in the US and in some prisons, notably, DeKalb County Jail
near Atlanta, where all prisoners are bar coded.
-
-
- 'Non-Lethal' Technology of Control
-
- The increasing militarisation of police
forces throughout the world is reflected in the spread of "less lethal"
weapons such as pepper gas. Benignly referred to by the media as "capsicum
spray", pepper gas was recently used by Australian police in the state
of Victoria to subdue a man. According to media reports, the Victorian
police also used "a weapon they don't want to disclose".
-
- The effects of pepper gas are far more
severe than most people realise. It is known to cause temporary blindness,
a burning sensation of the skin which lasts from 45 to 60 minutes, upper
body spasms which force a person to bend forward and uncontrollable coughing
making it difficult to breathe or speak for between 3 to 15 minutes.
-
- For those with asthma or subject to restraining
techniques which restrict the breathing passages, there is a risk of death.
The Los Angeles Times has reported at least 61 deaths associated with police
use of pepper spray since 1990 in the USA, and the American Civil Liberties
Union (ACLU) has documented 27 deaths in custody of people sprayed with
pepper gas in California alone, since 1993.
-
- The US Army concluded in a 1993 Aberdeen
Proving Ground study that pepper spray could cause "Mutagenic effects,
carcinogenic effects, sensitization, cardiovascular and pulmonary toxicity,
neuro-toxicity, as well as possible human fatalities."
-
- The existing arsenal of weapons designed
for public order and control will soon be joined by a second generation
of kinetic, chemical, optico-acoustic, and microwave weapons, adding to
the disabling and paralysing technologies already available. Much of the
initial work on these new technologies has been undertaken in US nuclear
laboratories such as Oak Ridge, Lawrence Livermore and Los Alamos. The
European Parliament Report "An Appraisal of the Technologies of Political
Control" lists a Pandora's box of new technologies including:
-
- -- Ultra-sound generators, which cause
disorientation, vomiting and involuntary defecation, disturbing the ear
system which controls balance and inducing nausea. The system which uses
two speakers can target individuals in a crowd.
-
- -- Visual stimulus and illusion techniques
such as high intensity strobes which pulse in the critical epileptic fit-inducing
flashing frequency and holograms used to project active camouflage.
-
- -- Reduced energy kinetic weapons. Variants
on the bean bag philosophy which ostensibly will result in no damage (similar
claims were once made about plastic bullets).
-
- -- New disabling, calmative, sleep inducing
agents mixed with DMSO which enables the agent to quickly cross the skin
barrier and an extensive range of pain causing, paralysing and foul-smelling
area-denial chemicals. Some of these are chemically engineered variants
of the heroin molecule. They work extremely rapidly, one touch and disablement
follows. Yet one person's tranquillisation may be another's lethal dose.
-
- -- Microwave and acoustic disabling systems.
-
- -- Human capture nets which can be laced
with chemical irritant or electrified to pack an extra disabling punch.
-
- -- Lick `em and stick `em technology
such as the Sandia National Laboratory's foam gun which expands to between
35-50 times its original volume. Its extremely sticky, gluing together
any target's feet and hands to the pavement.
-
- -- Aqueous barrier foam which can be
laced with pepper spray.
-
- -- Blinding laser weapons and isotrophic
radiator shells which use superheated gaseous plasma to produce a dazzling
burst of laser like light.
-
- -- Thermal guns which incapacitate through
a wall by raising body temperature to 107 degrees.
-
- -- Magnetosphere gun which delivers what
feels like a blow to the head.
-
- "An Appraisal of the Technologies
of Political Control" says "we are no longer at a theoretical
stage with these weapons. US companies are already piloting new systems,
lobbying hard and where possible, laying down potentially lucrative patents."
For example, last year New Scientist reported that the American Technology
Corporation (ATC) of Poway, California has used what it calls acoustical
heterodyning technology to target individuals in a crowd with infra-sound
to pinpoint an individual 200-300 metres away. The system can also project
sonic holograms which can conjure audio messages out of thin air so just
one person hears them. Meanwhile, Jane's reported that the US Army Research
Laboratory has produced a variable velocity rifle for lethal or non lethal
use -- a new twist to flexible response. Other companies are promoting
robots for use in riot and prison control.
-
-
- Advances in Biometric Identification
-
- Through the inevitability of gradualness,
repression technology, in the form of biometric identity systems, is permeating
our every day life. Biometry involves using a physical characteristic such
as a fingerprint, palm print, iris or retina scan to identify individuals.
These unique identity charact-eristics are digitally stored on a computer
system for verification. This way, the identity of each person can be compared
to the stored original. Christians will be interested to note that with
biometric systems, the original print is stored not as a `picture' but
as an algorithm. The number of your name will be literally in your hand
(thumb print) or in your forehead (eyes).
-
- Biometric identification is not something
that we just see at the movies. It is here, it is with us now. Governments
in Australia, the USA and the UK are planning its widespread introduction
by 2005.
-
- Both the Dutch and Australian public
rejected plans for a national information and identification scheme en
masse several years ago, but have reacted more passively to equally intrusive
(but less blatant) schemes in the 1990's.
-
- Uses of the Social Security Number in
the USA, the Social Insurance Number in Canada, the Tax File Number in
Australia, the SOFI Number in the Netherlands and the Austrian Social Security
Number have been extended progressively to include taxation, unemployment
support, pensioner benefits and, in some cases, health and higher education.
Functional creep is rampant.
-
- Large scale government computer based
schemes have been shown in several countries to be much less cost-effective
than was originally estimated. Years after the governments of the United
States and Australia developed schemes to match public sector data, there
is still no clear evidence that the strategy has succeeded in achieving
its goals. The audit agencies of both federal governments have cast doubt
that computer matching schemes deliver savings.
-
- A nationwide survey by Columbia University
last year reported that 83% of people approve of the use of finger imaging.
Biometrics is being embraced on a global scale. The Australian company,
Fingerscan, a subsidiary of Californian based Identix Inc, recently won
one of the biggest bank contracts for biometric security in the world.
Fingerscan is working with the Bank of Central Asia in Jakarta, Indonesia
to replace numeric passwords for employees at 5000 branches with fingerprint
based system access.
-
- Fingerscan also has the world's largest
application of biometrics in the servicing of automated teller machines.
In conjunction with contractor Armaguard, which services ATMs for Australian
banks, many ATMs are now unlocked by the representative's fingerprint.
The representative brings a portable scanning device that plugs into the
back of the ATM and connects the bank's server which grants him or her
admittance.
-
- The US government has a deadline of 1999
to implement electronic benefits processing for welfare recipients, but
this may be delayed to accommodate biometrics, which is currently being
piloted in five American states. The Australian government will introduce
a biometric identity system for welfare recipients by 2005.
-
- Blue Cross and Blue Shield in the USA
have plans to introduce nationwide fingerprinting for hospital patients.
This may be extended into other medical applications. The Jamaican Government
is planning to introduce electronic thumb scanning to control elections.
Social Security verification using biometrics is used in Spain and South
Africa. In 1994, the UK Department of Social Security developed a proposal
to introduce a national identification card, which recommended a computerised
database of the hand-prints of all 30 million people receiving government
income assistance.
-
-
- Big Brother's International Network of
Surveillance
-
- Biometric identification is the technology
of today and the future. It is not a matter of if, but when, a global network
of computers will link all stored biometric images in a central location,
managed by a collective of international authorities.
-
- In 1994, under the leadership of US Centre
for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a consortium of the world's
leading companies formed the Global Information Infrastructure Commission
(GIIC). Headed by the president of Mitsubishi, the chair of EDS, and the
vice chair of Siemens Corporation, the GIIC intends to create a conglomerate
of interests powerful enough to subsume government interest in the regulation
of biometric and other technologies. The effort is being funded to a large
extent by the World Bank.
-
- Governments in 26 countries are, at this
moment, monitoring and cooperating with project FAST (Future Automated
Screening for Travelers). FAST was first piloted in 1993 by US immigration
authorities when a new lane at New York's John F. Kennedy airport was opened.
The technology for the system is known as INPASS (Immigration and Natur-alization
Service Passenger Accelerated Service System) which is a biometric identification
system used to expedite passengers through customs at international airports
in as little as 20 seconds.
-
- Applicants for registration with FAST
are interviewed, and identity confirmed. Hand prints are taken, converted
to a template and stored digitally on a smart card. Once the last of five
green lights appear at the tips of the fingers, the glass exit door opens
and the passenger continues to the baggage claim and customs zone. The
system is currently a voluntary trial for frequent travellers to and from
the USA who are US or Canadian nationals.
-
- With new technology, travelers can rest
assured that their security is always in good hands. The US Militech Corporation
has developed a Passive Millimeter Wave Imaging system, which can scan
people from up to 12 feet away and see through clothing to detect concealed
items such as weapons, packages and other contraband. Variations of this
through-clothing human screening are under development by companies such
as the US Raytheon Corporation, and will be an irresistible addition to
international airports everywhere.
-
- Once upon a time, surveillance was targeted
at certain groups and individuals. In our time, surveillance occurs en
masse. Much of the `harmless' computer based technology necessary for our
daily lives could actually be used to keep the entire population under
surveillance.
-
- Telephone systems lend themselves to
a dual role as a national interceptions network, according to "An
Appraisal of the Technologies of Political Control". For example,
the message switching system used on digital exchanges like System X in
the UK, supports an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) Protocol.
This allows digital devices, e.g. faxes, to share the system with existing
lines. The ISDN subset is defined in their documents as "Signaling
CCITT"-series interface for ISDN access.
-
- What is not widely known is that built-in
to the international CCITT protocol is the ability to take phones `off
hook' and listen into conversations occurring near the phone, without the
user being aware that it is happening. This effectively means that a national
dial up telephone tapping capacity is built into these systems from the
start. Further, the digital technology required to pinpoint mobile phone
users for incoming calls means that all mobile phones in a country when
activated, are mini-tracking devices.
-
- The issues surrounding the uncontrolled
and unregulated spread of tyrannical technology are immediate and ongoing.
The technologies of repression that are trialed in so-called non-democratic
countries are now being aggressively marketed in the West, while Hitler's
Germany becomes a vague memory. It is up to us to do what ever we can to
stop the insidious spread of this technology, and to demand the right to
choose whether we participate in the biometric system or not. We should
ask ourselves... who will heed our cry for help once these technologies
are fully implemented?
-
-
- REFERENCES
-
- Davies, Simon, "Touching Big Brother",
Information Technology People, Vol 7, No 4, 1994
-
- Elllerman, Sarah, "The Rise of Tempest",
Internet Underground Magazine, June 1996.
-
- European Parliament, Scientific and Technical
Operations Assessment, 1998, "An Appraisal of Technologies of Political
Control", available at http://jya.com/stoa-atpc.com
-
- Jane's US Military R & D, "Human
Computer Interface, Vol 1, Issue 3 1997
-
- O'Sullivan, Olara, "Biometrics comes
to Life", http://www.banking.com/aba/cover_0197.htm
-
- Privacy International, 1995, "Big
Brother Incorporated", http://www.privacy.org/pi
-
- US Scientific Advisory Board, "New
World Vistas", the proceedings of Fiftieth Anniversary Symposium of
the USAF SAB, November 10, 1994, (republished by International Committee
for the Convention Against Offensive Microwave Weapons).
-
-
-
- Susan Bryce is an investigative journalist
and researcher whose interests include issues which affect individual freedom,
environmental health, surveillance technology and global politics. She
can be contacted c/- Mapleton Post Office, QLD 4560
|
