Re: 2015 SCJ 177

From: S Moonesamy <sm+mu_at_elandsys.com>
Date: Fri, 05 Jun 2015 08:00:54 -0700

Hi Ish,
At 05:13 05-06-2015, Ish Sookun wrote:
>I understand your point. I believe a more correct metric to measure
>the readiness of a country deploying such technology would be its
>success rate in previous technological projects.

Please see
https://www.govmu.org/English/E-Services/Pages/Application-for-Assistance-to-Mauritians-in-Distress-Abroad.aspx
Does that work on your smartphone?

   "An e-Business Plan for the computerisation of the local authorities
    (5 Municipal and 4 District Councils) was prepared in 2007. In 2011,
    based on the recommendations of the plan, an e-Governance portal was
    implemented. Local authorities (LAs) IT systems interface with the
    e-Governance portal which is hosted on the Government Online Centre.
    The building blocks of the LA systems include revenue management,
    finance, HR & payroll, library management, cadastre, complaints
    management, etc. The portal will provide informative services and
    online application/queries for the services provided by the LAs."

There is a complaints link:
https://la.govmu.org/eServices/faces/onlRegisterComplaint.jspx The
web site does not provide any information about privacy.

Are there successful technological projects in the country? If you
read Facebook messages the answer might be no. If you read the
reports which are published the answer might be yes.

>Can the technology used to detect a crime, also be used to commit a crime?

Yes.

There are also other issues. Let's assume that you have an
acquaintance on Facebook and that she is interested in you. If she
has access to the technology, would she do a little search to find
out more about you? What if you told her that you are busy at work
and the facial recognition system identified a photo in which you are
at another place?

>Data breaches appear to be handled with utmost secrecy in the local
>context. Few people would dare to discuss them on a public platform.
>The last few weeks we have been discussing about open data & freedom
>of information. Till now how many people in Mauritius have expressed
>an interest in cyber incidents & data breaches with the relevant agencies.

I agree that only a few people would dare discussing about data
breaches publicly. There are very few people would are interested in
discussing about security incidents. There was the following
incident:
http://hacklog.in/infected-files-on-mauritius-network-services-website/
Would would believe a person talking about security if the person
tells you that "this is not a problem"? Would you rely on someone
for security advice if the person says that "security by obscurity"
is a best practice?

>One of the factors that discourages me from giving my fingerprints
>is the lack/reluctance of guarantee that no government (or a
>third-party) would use the data without my consent.

Some people consider it as a problem to give consent without knowing
what they are consenting to; some people do not consider that as a problem.

Regards,
S. Moonesamy
Received on Fri Jun 05 2015 - 15:08:47 PST

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