Australian Meta-Data Retention Law and Australia VPN

singapore, Singapore, October 14, 2015 (Newswire.com) - ​​​​The meta-data law was the brain child of Australia's 27th Prime Minister, Julia Gillard's, when she first proposed it in 2012. It was seconded by Australia's 28th Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, during his term, and is now being carried forward by Australia's 29th Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, in a twist that is destined to give movie makers context for a movie adaptation in the near future. Malcolm Turnbull helmed the creation of the meta-data retention scheme, two years after he insisted that it was 'heading precisely in the wrong direction’.

It took years to arrive, but seems to have made its way through the cracks, and is here to stay.

The recent Australian data retention law is designed to ensure warrantless recording, retention and usage of users' meta-data. InfoSec experts at VPNRanks detail how the impact of the law can be countered using VPN services, as Netizens in the US and UK have been doing for years.

Luckily, VPN services have been helping internet users secure meta-data for years. Having dealt with the antics of the NSA and the GCHQ, VPN services have evolved to provide users with the virtual coverage needed to remain off the government's grid during personal and professional internet sessions. Data Encryption, IP cloaking and tunneling are three of the most basic features of a standard VPN service; all of which and have been helping Netizens in the US and UK circumvent online government surveillance for years.

Senior researcher, internet privacy advocate and Information Security expert at VPNRanks.com, Danish Pervez, stated that "Australians need to awaken to the fact that Meta-Data is all the uniquely traceable data that is generated and utilized during an individual's internet activity - almost all of which is unencrypted by default. We've confirmed that identities are uniquely traceable thanks to unencrypted meta-data. ISPs and telecom service providers operating in Australia are still struggling to do so adequately, but have already started retaining user data, and will store all of this recorded data for a period of 2 years. The government is channeling over a $130 million in taxpayer money to make sure of that. "

Proponents of the law insist that the law will help nip mass casualty terrorist activities in the bud and the Australian government has attempted to set a threshold by stating that the meta-data collection law will only come into action (mostly without need of a warrant) if an investigation contains any one of the following three characteristics:

• There is potential for harm to human life
• Government income has to be protected
• Punishment for the crime in question includes a prison sentence of at least 2 years

Danish further pointed out that "The problem with this threshold is that the appropriate rationalization will enable just about any investigation to utilize the data collected under the meta-data law. The entire meta-data retention law is an exercise in futility if the goal is to genuinely assist in counter-terrorism and crime prevention, because the net outcome of the meta-data law is what services like PureVPN have been working to counter for years now."

Addressing the sudden spike in internet search for VPN services, Danish clarified that “We've seen Australian Netizens use PureVPN to access Netflix and secure Android devices in the past, but the recent meta-data law has sent searches for the service through the roof.”

The world will watch history repeat itself as Australians, much like their US and UK counterparts, prepare to experience online surveillance for the first time. Response to the meta-data retention is equally polarized; some Australians are setting up VPN on their desktops, smartphones and routers; while others couldn't care less.

Contact Information:

VPNRANKS
38 Beach Road, #29-11 South Beach Tower
Singapore 189767
South East Asia