EU lawmakers want restrictions on social networking
What is it about politicians that make them absolutely freak out about things that they really shouldn’t be wroried about? The latest is that the EU internet security agency ENISA is calling for all sorts of new laws to be put in place concerning social networks. It sounds like most of the proposed laws will take care of really minor “problems” that might occur at the expense of annoying just about everyone. For example, it wants laws to be put in place saying that you cannot post someone’s photo online without their consent. You can understand the extreme case they’re looking to prevent (someone putting up embarrassing photos), but that’s rare, and the trouble it will cause for normal folks just taking snapshots will be immense. ENISA is apparently also really worried about the fact that (I kid you not) people don’t realize that you can befriend people via a social network that you don’t really know (gasp!). The thing is, social conventions seem to take care of most of these problems without the need for any sort of special legislation, but if you’re a gov’t agency, I guess it’s only natural to think in terms of what laws can you add.
