Annie Machon: IT Defense Conference, Hamburg January 2008

In January 2008 I spoke at the IT Defense Conference in Hamburg in January 2008. This is a summary of my talk.

The Spying Game? – Annie Machon

I gave a presentation about the role of intelligence agencies in the current era of the unending “war on terror”, how they monitor us, and the implications for our democracies.

In the name of protecting national security, spy agencies are being given sweeping new powers and resources. Their intelligence has been politicised to build a case for the disastrous war in Iraq, they are failing to stop terrorist attacks, and they continue to collude in illegal acts of internment and torture, euphemistically called “extraordinary rendition”. Most western democracies have already given so many new powers to the spies that we are effectively living in police states. As an informed community, what can we do about this?

Detail:

What it was like to be recruited and work for MI5.

The crimes of MI5 and MI6. These include:

- MI5 files held on government ministers.

- IRA bombs that could and should have been prevented.

- Illegal MI5 phone taps.

- Lying to government

- The 1994 bombing of the Israeli embassy in London by Mossad

- The illegal MI6 assassination attempt against Colonel Gaddafi of Libya

How to go “on the run”, what it’s like to cross the secret state, and how to survive.

The lack of accountability and oversight. The spies literally get away with murder.

The current situation. Despite glaring intelligences failures, both in the run-up to the Iraq war and in a number of recent terrorist attacks on the UK, our government still continues to grant more resources and powers to the spies. Why?