Big Brother is watching YOU!

In 1969 I was studying at a College in India when I read George Orwell’s “Animal Farm” and “1984” for the first time. His dystopian novel written in 1948 about what life would be like in 1984 was shocking enough but far-fetched, I thought then. The term “Orwellian” talks about a totalitarian state where the citizens are under constant surveillance. But I wonder now if Orwell had an inkling of the “totalitarian control” of other forces on citizens’ lives some 30 years after his book was written.

Some Christians believe that the Computer and now the Internet is the Big Brother. There seems to be some truth in this. When I started in the mainframe world, every piece of hardware had some form of hard-coded identity. But since the arrival of the WWW and the Internet I am identified by my IP address and the myriads of usernames and passwords I have to remember. Worse, someone invented “cookies” and every move of mine is now tracked when I am online on the Internet. This invasive surveillance in the Information Technology world is raising concerns about one’s identity, personal privacy and security.

OK, I can ditch my credit cards with those eschatological 666 symbols, I don’t have to worry about the totalitarian state as dictators and the Berlin Walls have collapsed; and thankfully democracy reigns in most parts of the world. But how can I live without my Internet? Yes, I still own my Intellectual Property (IP) but I don’t really own my IP address. Are you saying as Orwell did. “Big Brother is watching you?” So be afraid, very afraid? Ultimately is the Big Brother - My Computer?