[LINK] "Mobile phone location data used to track Australians' movements during coronavirus crisis"

Roger Clarke Roger.Clarke at xamax.com.au
Sun Apr 5 11:03:56 AEST 2020


On 5/4/20 9:41 am, Christian Heinrich wrote:
> https://www.smh.com.au/technology/mobile-phone-location-data-used-to-track-australians-movements-during-coronavirus-crisis-20200404-p54h09.html

My comments on the privacy list were as follows:

[The two diagrams show the degree of compliance that's been achieved 
with the governments' urgings for spatial isolation and reduced movement.

[It's a bit chilling how successful it's been in Australia:
https://e.infogr.am/sydney-movement-citymapper-1h8n6mz8x9pv2xo?live?parent_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.smh.com.au%2Ftechnology%2Fmobile-phone-location-data-used-to-track-australians-movements-during-coronavirus-crisis-20200404-p54h09.html&src=embed#async_embed 


[But it's been achieved in Australia by 'moral suasion', with very 
measured use of authoritarian speech, and even more carefully measured 
use of authoritarian action.

[So far, despite my degree of scepticism about several aspects of the 
nature of the epidemic, touch wood, Australia and its government has 
behaved in an eminently civilised manner.]


[The Vodafone move is above all a corporate strategic PR play, to get 
its name in front of the Australian public in a positive way.  It's been 
done a sufficiently long time after the last really bad news about 
Vodafone that it could well help reverse the company's fortunes.

[The privacy negatives arising from the data disclosure appear to be 
pretty limited - although, as always, the devil's in the detail that the 
public isn't being told.

[The privacy negatives arising from the possession by Vodafone, Optus 
and Telstra of the underlying, identified data are vast.

[Totalitarian governments, and wannabes like Dutton and the 
shaven-headed brigade in a range of Canberra agencies, are salivating at 
the prospect of normalising the expropriation and exploitation of such 
data.

[So this reminds us all how fragile democracies already are.  And how 
quickly the moves will be by future Hitlers / Lenins-Stalins / Pol Pots 
/ PRC supremos / Saudi, Central Asian and African dictators / etc.]


-- 
Roger Clarke                            mailto:Roger.Clarke at xamax.com.au
T: +61 2 6288 6916   http://www.xamax.com.au  http://www.rogerclarke.com

Xamax Consultancy Pty Ltd      78 Sidaway St, Chapman ACT 2611 AUSTRALIA 

Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Law            University of N.S.W.
Visiting Professor in Computer Science    Australian National University



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