Internet security: Do it yourself

INTERNET security has become one of the issues of our time and various people have taken various positions on how to protect resources or vulnerable people.

Speaking at a Dublin conference on violent online political extremism yesterday, Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald said that promised legislation in the area would be informed by a report being prepared by the Law Reform Commission. She insisted that threats to the person would be confronted in a way that would not limit free speech, but protect the individual. She also recognised the line between our virtual world and our actual world is becoming ever more blurred.

Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has taken a more hands-on approach. A photograph published by Facebook this week shows that Mr Zuckerberg has taped over the webcam and microphone port on his laptop, thereby closing the door to unwelcome prying eyes or ears.

The lesson? By all means, enact legislation, but personal responsibility and intervention may be the better and far more practical option in the longer run.