Snooper's Charter: Survey Finds Most UK Citizens Unaware Of Government Surveillance Capabilities

Citizens of the United Kingdom are worried about overreaching government surveillance, but seven in 10 remain unaware of the government’s ability to monitor online activity, a study found.

Virtual Private Network (VPN) comparison site BestVPN.com surveyed 2,000 members of the public and found that while many people are concerned about their privacy online, most are unaware of or misinformed about the government’s ability to obtain digital data.

Read: VPN Services Report Huge Increase In Downloads, Usage Since Broadband Privacy Rules Were Repealed​

One-in-three of those surveyed said they believe the British government has no ability to monitor online activity, while 76 percent were completely unaware of the Investigatory Powers Bill, which went into effect earlier this year.

The Investigatory Powers Bill, otherwise known as the Snooper’s Charter, gives government agencies in Britain the ability to access online records without the need for a warrant. It also requires internet service providers to maintain records for 12 months, meaning an individual’s full year of online activity could be accessed at any time by law enforcement.

Just 23 percent of those participating in the survey were able to name any of the 48 government agencies that will have the ability to access a person’s browsing history under the Investigatory Powers Bill.

Of those who were able to name at least one agency that could access online activity, most pointed to police and intelligence services. Just 12 percent realized the Department for Work and Pensions had the same access, while only nine percent knew the Food Standards Agency could also make warrantless requests for digital data.

Read: Snooper’s Charter: Why US Tech Giants Apple, Facebook, Google Fear UK Mass Surveillance Bill

More than half of those surveyed, 59 percent, said they would not consent to the government or third parties having the ability to view or monitor their online activity, suggesting that most would not approve of the wide-reaching powers granted to agencies by the Investigatory Powers Bill.

Three in 10 respondents said they were most afraid of the possibility of the government hacking their devices, while 28 percent feared their browsing history may be surveyed. Despite those concerns, 43 percent of people indicated they were not at all concerned about what the government could be looking at.

It is noteworthy that 63 percent said they would be willing to agree to being monitored in order to prevent criminal activity or potential terrorist threats—the very premise for which the Snooper’s Charter was passed.

More than 40 percent of those surveyed admitted to deleting their browsing history to avoid someone seeing it, including 32 percent of people confessing to hiding their internet browsing history from their partners. Another 15 percent said they took steps to hide their data from employers.

“We wanted to find out how much people know about internet privacy and whether they understand the full ramifications of online censorship,” Douglas Crawford, Digital Privacy Expert at BestVPN.com said.

“It’s clear the British public has a long way to go in order to become fully informed about the realities of online monitoring. Taking steps to ensure personal privacy is censored should be the first port of call.”