Internet changes the way information is handled

The Wikileaks site. There has never been greater need for tighter security measures to be taken to protect sensitive files. Photo/FREDRICK ONYANGO

How much information is too much information?

For the last few days, the world has vigorously debated that question in light of the serialised Wikileaks bulletins.

Apart from opening up debate on diplomatic relations and ethical boundaries, Wikileaks is the most blatant example of how the internet is changing the way information is handled in the digital era.

As any proficient dictator knows, choking off the free flow of information is one of the surest ways to cling to power.

In the pre-Lutheran age, Catholics maintained control of the Bible so that they could wield power over illiterate peasants, thereby creating a situation where they controlled much of the economy.

Notable achievement

While Julian Assange is no modern-day Martin Luther, his website’s most notable achievement has been to uncover the fact that it is now close to impossible to hide information form the masses.

Although the original website was shut down earlier this week, mirror sites — which replicate the data on the website on servers hosted around the world — are popping up faster than you can say Assange.

The viral nature of the internet is creating new outlets for the information, as people pass on the data to each other using various social media.

The US has already warned some civil servants that if they are caught reading the site they may face disciplinary action, and has advised some university students to refrain from debating the cables.

Students at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs were recently warned by an alumnus now working for the US State Department that posting documents leaked by WikiLeaks, even talking about them, could threaten their prospects for serving in the federal government.

Ironically, this is the same country that started off this year with strong criticism of China’s attitude to the internet, saying the Asian state’s tendency to block certain websites was unfair.

Some analysts are already assessing the impact that Wikileaks will have on how people, companies and governments handle information.

In an odd way, it could push us back into the Cold War era, when secret codes and clandestine meetings were the order of the day.

Diplomatic code

Indeed, the US government itself has already revised its diplomatic code; reportedly advising embassy staff to come for meetings in smaller numbers, and asking some staffers to leave their notebooks and other devices outside the meetings room.

Almost certainly, the fallout from this unprecedented release of information is set to make most companies and governments re-assess the amount of information they generate physically and electronically.

Although it’s debatable whether what Mr Assange’s group did was right, there has never been greater need for tighter security measures to be taken to protect sensitive files, prevent unauthorised access to information, and more enhanced security among organisations.

By Kui Kinyanjui (for Daily Nation)