Why are the Feds concerned about Digital TV?

[IAMX 3,055]

There is a lot of truth to the tracking. Not just government.

People aren't terribly aware of the data mining pretty much every company does on you. Credit agencies, websites, all of them use your information to share it with others, especially large data mining companies that also, in turn, share it with the government.

What's worrisome isn't someone knowing what you do, but how they would use this information, and what happens if it leaks or gets into the wrong hands.

That being said, I'm sure if there were spy ####### in TVs and all that, people would quickly find ways to disable them. We have way too many anti-government, tech savvy people we can rely on.

Tracking/spying is possible through a television. A speaker is very much like a microphone and can be exploited to pass audio upstream. Video can only happen if someone were to gain access to your television, install a mini board camera, then exploit your cable service for the passage of the video. In reality, unlikely and not probable....unless you are doing something seriously wrong against the US Government....

Reminds me of Enemy of the State or that one movie with Mel Gibson (which I forget now) all over again.

Conspiracy Theory. Another 2 hours of my life that I'll never get back.

If only I could get back all the hours I spent from dates watching Dirty Dancing. It still haunts my dreams.

[Teacher Mark 53]

There is a lot of truth to the tracking. Not just government.

People aren't terribly aware of the data mining pretty much every company does on you. Credit agencies, websites, all of them use your information to share it with others, especially large data mining companies that also, in turn, share it with the government.

What's worrisome isn't someone knowing what you do, but how they would use this information, and what happens if it leaks or gets into the wrong hands.

That being said, I'm sure if there were spy ####### in TVs and all that, people would quickly find ways to disable them. We have way too many anti-government, tech savvy people we can rely on.

Tracking/spying is possible through a television. A speaker is very much like a microphone and can be exploited to pass audio upstream. Video can only happen if someone were to gain access to your television, install a mini board camera, then exploit your cable service for the passage of the video. In reality, unlikely and not probable....unless you are doing something seriously wrong against the US Government....

Reminds me of Enemy of the State or that one movie with Mel Gibson (which I forget now) all over again.

Conspiracy Theory. Another 2 hours of my life that I'll never get back.

If only I could get back all the hours I spent from dates watching Dirty Dancing. It still haunts my dreams.

Edited November 9, 2008 by Joe Six-Pack

[*JG* 2]

I hate being FORCED to do this.

Hey, Skippy.....no dissing Dirty Dancing. Those are fighting words!

[NickD 203]

There is a lot of truth to the tracking. Not just government.

People aren't terribly aware of the data mining pretty much every company does on you. Credit agencies, websites, all of them use your information to share it with others, especially large data mining companies that also, in turn, share it with the government.

What's worrisome isn't someone knowing what you do, but how they would use this information, and what happens if it leaks or gets into the wrong hands.

That being said, I'm sure if there were spy ####### in TVs and all that, people would quickly find ways to disable them. We have way too many anti-government, tech savvy people we can rely on.

Tracking/spying is possible through a television. A speaker is very much like a microphone and can be exploited to pass audio upstream. Video can only happen if someone were to gain access to your television, install a mini board camera, then exploit your cable service for the passage of the video. In reality, unlikely and not probable....unless you are doing something seriously wrong against the US Government....

I do know there is a black box under the passenger seat of my late model car that records how fast I am driving, if I am wearing my seat belt, applied the brakes, but they have to get their hands on it in the event of an accident, least for now.

I do know whenever I use my cell phone, big brother is listening in, so watch my words, a cell phone is a transmitter as well as a receiver.

Do know that big brother is monitoring my e-mails and other data, a computer sends as well as receives data, don't share MP3's, a girl in Duluth was recently arrested for that, and don't even tease about doing nasty things, a student in Janesville was arrested for that.

Do know to include the sales tax on my state income tax for any out of state purchases, our state IRS is monitoring all out of state purchases.

Now with off the air TV reception, your TV would have to be able to transmit that information for anyone to listen and watch for, not very likely, that would jam the airwaves. Cable TV is getting much like the same line for your computer, we have that on-demand stuff, but so dang slow just to change from program to program, do not feel the bandwidth is large enough to handle any video or audio data. But if they are watching me, may just learn the damn program is so boring, I fell asleep.

Laser devices are available that can detect vibrations on your window glass, so people can hear what you are saying inside of your home, but not that good yet, if you see a car parked out in the front of your house, that car window has to be down, and a guy will be pointing a rod like device at your window.

Ha, it's illegal to copy a movie off a DVD, but perfectly legal to copy that same movie off of cable, guess they want you to get a better copy.

But we shouldn't fret about being spied upon, it is done to keep our nation safe. Ours lives was a complete open book with the USCIS, get use to it.

[IAMX 3,055]

If doing suspicious things was a sign for the government to be onto you, there's no way I should have been approved on my I129-F, I'd have been flagged. If there were cameras in TVs aimed at us we'd know about it by now. The only person that really monitors your emails is a robot that does this for advertising purposes. So yes, given that ultimately the government collects data mining information from large data mining companies, who get it from advertising information on you, they know about certain purchases. You can, however, pay with cash in retail outlets for most things. There's no feasible way to track this either. Secondly, plenty of people use fake names and addresses on prepaid cell phones. While the numbers can be tracked, and the GPS location of it tracked, it's pretty much impossible beyond that if you walk into a store and, again, pay cash.

There are plenty of government intrusions I'm worried about. However, buying things is not one of them, as corporations and data mining companies have more on you than the government in most cases.