Spying just isn’t what it used to be
Once upon a time the identity of the head of the British external intelligence agency MI6 was veiled in secrecy. For example, in James Bond movies, he or she is known simply as “M”. But times have changed and the wife of the incoming head of MI6 went and put up a profile of her husband and family on Facebook. The information was subsequently removed but once something is publicly posted it may as well be regarded as permanent. Being a top spy certainly isn’t the same anymore.
It is always a case of some considerable concern when a lady reveals too much on Facebook. The site has standards, after all.
The lady in question this time is Lady Shelley Sawers, the wife of Sir John Sawers, the new head of British spy agency MI6.
According to reports in the Mail and numerous other media outlets, the fair lady may not have been quite aware that Facebook can be seen by a rather large number of people if you don’t specify that you want to keep your information vaguely private.
Lady Sawers saw fit to wander onto the site and reveal where their London apartment is located and where their children are. This might not appear to be the wisest course of social action if your children happen to be the offspring of the head of an international spying network.
Lady Sawers even posted 19 happy pictures of the family’s last vacation.
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The Internet has made privacy for almost everyone a thing of the past. Particularly with Google collecting personal data on virtually everyone using the Internet. Few people have the technical expertise to prevent this. I see there are now companies offering services to provide Internet privacy. Politicians and government bureaucrats are their main customers. Apparently Sir John Sawers didn’t think to sign up his relatives.