CIA Invests in In-Q-Tel to Monitor Blog Posts

I’m a bit hesitant to cover this news  item because of its sensitivity. But then I realized I’m not from the U.S. so I guess the CIA won’t be running after me in case I miss out some minor points of the news. Still, I’d be cautious and just mention the facts.

What am I talking about? Wired.com is running an exclusive piece about the CIA’s investment arm called In-Q-Tel which is reportedly eyeing a piece of Visible Technologies.  Visible Technologies is a software firm specializing on social media monitoring such as blog posts, online videos, newspaper articles, Flickr photos, Tweeter tweets and other social media by-products.

When tracking social media activities such as blog posts, Visible labels each post as either positive or negative, mixed or neutral. It also determines how influential a blogger or author is and the conversation that it  generates from his blog posts. Visible Technologies will then allow users to tag posts, share them with colleagues and provides a response mechanism via a web interface.

According to the report, In-Q-Tel wants Visible to track foreign social media activities and inform them of issues that are being handled internationally.

But the report further states:

Of course, such a tool can also be pointed inward, at domestic bloggers or tweeters. Visible already keeps tabs on web 2.0 sites for Dell, AT&T and Verizon. For Microsoft, the company is monitoring the buzz on its Windows 7 rollout. For Spam-maker Hormel, Visible is tracking animal-right activists’ online campaigns against the company.

See Also
"Optimizing Performance"

There are other finer points of In-Q-Tels decision to invest on Visible Technologies. But I would rather that you read them on your own, since this is  something that I don’t want to happen in the country where I’m located. It’s like putting too much power on a country’s Intel Department.

And we all know that  power comes with great responsibility. I don’t think the guys at the CIA In-Q-Tel are all Peter Parker wannabes who can handle power to the betterment of all.

Still, the question remains – are  you comfortable knowing that your blog posts or your Tweets are being monitored and track by a goverment agency?

Picture of Arnold Zafra

Arnold Zafra

Arnold Zafra is a freelance blogger/writer from Manila. He believes that 2010 will be the year of the ebook readers so he created a new blog dedicated to the upcoming Asus Eee Reader. You can follow him on Twitter.

RECENT ARTICLES

TRENDING AROUND THE WEB

People who make their bed every morning share these 9 surprising personality traits

People who make their bed every morning share these 9 surprising personality traits

Global English Editing

7 types of friends you should consider letting go as you get older, says this psychologist

7 types of friends you should consider letting go as you get older, says this psychologist

Parent From Heart

People who can be alone and still feel fulfilled usually display these 7 distinctive traits

People who can be alone and still feel fulfilled usually display these 7 distinctive traits

Hack Spirit

7 times in life when you should trust your gut more than any expert, according to psychology

7 times in life when you should trust your gut more than any expert, according to psychology

Global English Editing

If you don’t want to be that friend who’s difficult to be around, say goodbye to these 8 behaviors

If you don’t want to be that friend who’s difficult to be around, say goodbye to these 8 behaviors

Global English Editing

These 4 zodiac signs rarely speak up, but notice absolutely everything

These 4 zodiac signs rarely speak up, but notice absolutely everything

Parent From Heart