Australia Card -What do you think ?

[Tweet]

The Australia Card........the next political tracking device of citizen activity.

Personal privacy has always been an issue with Australians so the previous rejection in 1987 of an Australia Card came as no surprise.

But with the advent of terrorism, John Howard who once dismissed it as intrusive is now advocating it as a security measure or possibly he is just creating a smoke screen for his industrial relations campaign to overthrow worker's rights.

He is a political strategist so having a few cards to shuffle in this time of control over both Houses of Parliament is an opportunity not to be lost.

The Australia Card can either be a simple identity check or a tracking device.

One might think this is a little paranoid, a tracking device ?

Modern microchip technology easily allows this,simply passing through an entrance scanner allows for details and identity of the card to be read.

So if one needs to carry the card at all times to access department stores,trains,buses ,aircraft,places of governmental interest,even for its purpose of identification then personal tracking is available to the authorities.

And as you know getting false allegations or incorrect details entered onto databases whether governmental or big business removal is nigh impossible to be certain of.

'Rubbish in' can do a lot of damage to one's credibility in this world of insecurity leaving one without any resources to clear one's name,you may just have to live with it,if that is possible .

What do you think ? No worries.......She'll be right,Mate !

C.M

[john1503559500]

Isn't big brother already watching ?

[DrP]

Any card like this would be about as useful as a vegitarian sausage at a beef lovers convention as far as preventing terrorism goes. Unless of course, the Howard government plans to increase ASIO's rank greatly and have them walking down the street, tapping you on the shoulder and asking you to produce your papers on demand (or some equally invasive way of checking your identity all the time). Uh oh. That sounds familiar. Something like that happened in the 20th century, but I can't quite put my finger on it.

[gclark8]

CM, if you can get a card that says "CM, DBA Forum Member", wear it proudly around your neck...

I wonder if the Govt has a record of where I buy my Lycra??

['ct']

Not going to happen as a few Coalition MP's surely have skeletons in the cupboard that they would not want revealed. And honestly, can anyone trust the incompetance of ASIO to administer it. This is how NAZI Germany started.

This is so off topic

[vat_man]

I can't believe this has been raised in the wake of the London bombings, which an ID card would have done nothing to prevent. All four of the bombers were carrying genuine ID! Then you've got potential fraud, data protection and accuracy of confidential information issues and you're ba

[Binxx]

I wonder if the Govt has a record of where I buy my Lycra??

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

ALDI'S

[Tweet]

"I wonder if the Govt has a record of where I buy my Lycra??"

............ALDI'S

They do now.....George (even though it was a bit of a stretch).

C.M

[Guest EZYHD]

Would be a good idea to have this extra card when buying with CC's to confirm you are the holder. Just try and get a job in the UsS without a green card its near impossible.

[DrP]

Get a CC with your photo on it.

[John_Barber]

Personal privacy has always been an issue with Australians so the previous rejection in 1987 of an Australia  Card came as no surprise.

What do you think ? No worries.......She'll be right,Mate !

I'm the type of person who has nothing to fear from an "Australia Card" (well I don't think I have anything to fear!).

From it's proposal in the late 80's with the deliberately patriotic moniker coined to attempt to give it some veneer of acceptability, I have been totally against this type of thing.

The problem is not so much what checks and balances are introduced now, but how these can easily be whittled away by future governments.

The incompetent Immigration Department, who have clearly demonstrated their 'competence' and 'honesty' over the handling of Vivian Solon, is a good example of why we cannot trust public servants to properly manage our private data.

Some commentators have made the very valid point that a "one stop shop" for identity, makes it even easier for those criminals who wish to engage in identity fraud.

Plus there's the pretty simple fact that this type of thing is going to have absolutely no affect on reducing terrorism/crime etc.

The only good thing which should come about by Mr. Howard raising this as an issue to be debated, is that we can all roundly condemn the whole idea.

Cheers

JB

[Digicruiser]

Australia Card won't much any difference to terrorism, the poms there had them but it didn't stop it.

It's just another ploy "Get everything through while people are scared and looking for some fix that currently is accepted to do..."

The Police would find it handy though, but we do have corrupt Police around the traps (Vice is going to get ya 8-) ).

What is to stop someone breaking the protections on these things and give oneself a bogus name and address etc?

How if you have someone on the inside in the card facility or where ever they are made - have a duplicate of somebody's card and drop it at a crime scene- wholla, can you prove where you were if alone at night at home 8-) hmmm

[Tweet]

How long will it be before we have micro-chip implantation as a security measure ?

And to stretch the imagination ........with GPS capabilities and satellite tracking ?

Anyone not having a personal identifier being deemed an 'Enemy of the State'.

How intrusive can we go when we are regarded as just a means to an end by big coporations and governments ?

Time to join the penguins in Antartica I think

C.M

[Digicruiser]

Time to join the penguins in Antartica I think

The SPY satelite will reach you there too!

[Digicruiser]

What about these call-in lines on TV. "You can be anonymous..." - BULLSHYTE!!!

I remember crises care in the old days had direct Police access to find out who called them. In all of those types of call-in services where serious life and death stuff is concerned, they all have caller-id showing on their displays even if you have a silent line.

You can also find out the last 10 (?) calls made to you from a harrasser, from the Police / Telstra very quickly if a complaint was made etc...

You want to be anonymous, don't call from your home phone, call from the phone box down the road! Wear a pair of dark glasses just in case they snuck in phone boxes with cameras (maybe not yet).

:ph34r:

[hornblower]

So, what you already have

Birth certificate

Marriage certificate

Dog licenseSchool reports

Junior sports club memberships

Other club memberships

Bank account(s)

Credit cards

Loans

Own a car

Insurances

Registration papers

Passport

Driving license

Fishing licence

Rates notices

ATO membership

Health fund membership

Medicare

and another 1000 bits of information generally availabe.

And do you really worry about an ID card. Please get out of your shelter as anybody can find out everything about you now and may have it all wrong. Privacy is a big joke.

hornblower

[Digicruiser]

There's even a big server which holds all the goods bought from Super-markets etc; wonder if it's tied in to your credit card?

They now want to extend that to a service so they can remember you next time you visit - the "Smart-trolley" will know what you want and of course it's tied in to some identification...

[Digicruiser]

Australia created the "Promis" software to "tie in" databases from many government orgs for use in the Security services. Centralisation of data at each location is why they are eager to cut down stand-alone systems in some departments - although that is not stated. "They" can bring up a profile with all the information brought together, with all your details you never thought be used else where and breaking the confidentiality of those Gov services you thought you could trust a little.

This old software was pinched by the Americans and modified, then they tried to sell it back to the Aussie orgs -

[john1503559500]

As I said above, big brother is already watching; we have already given the information away as alluded to by Hornblower and Digi.

But from what I have read, the London bombers had legit ID cards and it didn't stop a thing!!!!!

[Digicruiser]

Yep, didn't make any difference except they can identify them faster AFTER the bombing...

OK just say I have my Australia ID card, and now I've become some sort of new extremist - sure they may track my training with the "mob" but how do they know I am now going to make some device to set off downtown? They wouldn't unless they were watching me - logical and simple that the ID card didn't make any difference here. And they won't go around checking each ID card for their authenticity in a general check... It's just Howard trying to shove this through while people are more than willing to accept it when scared about terrorism.

[Tweet]

Terrorism has nothing to do with it,it is personal and political profiling......so they can manipulate your voting pattern by appealing to your anxieties and self-interests.

Political parties are free to access Internet records of your surfing habits,so any personal profile can easily be established.

For most of us, we tend to fit the same social profile and are containable by self- regulation (law abiding), it is the psychological fringe that alerts surveillance, so Governments identify those that might be a threat to the status quo and their political survival.

C.M