Jim Killock’s blog

In January this year, young programmer and open society evangelist Aaron Swartz killed himself at the age of 26. As someone who had helped create RSS, developed Reddit, and been a huge force in recent Internet campaigns against the US SOPA and PIPA bills, his death was a huge blow to digital rights supporters.

I was lucky enough to talk as a guest on BBC R4’s Bringing up Britain this week. I wasn’t prepared for the full onslaught of opinion loaded towards filtering the Internet wherever possible.

An unprecedented lobby effort is threatening to derail changes to data protection laws aimed at giving you new rights over your data. Lobbyists from the USA and Europe are shouting extremely loudly in an attempt to water down new regulations, which they fear will cost them money.

It’s January, and with luck you have lots of new toys to play with. Maybe you’ll have a new games console, a phone or iPad. Perhaps you’ll have bought some software with them, downloaded directly through a curated store.

Some years you look back and think, thank God that’s over. You wonder how on earth industry lobbyists and ignorant, lazy politicians are allowed to decide the fate of our digital rights, and how they can justify the erosion of free speech and privacy that their policies will cause.

A spate of arrests since 2010 has landed around seven people in court or gaol for sending shocking remarks on the Internet. These “social media trials” have centred on individuals sending “grossly offensive” Tweets or Facebook updates. They have been prosecuted under Section 127a of the Communications Act, and the sentences have left many of us wondering exactly what might land us in trouble with the law: merely for expressing opinions that other people find offensive.

Late in the evening, a policeman knocks on the door. He presents you with a warrant to search your house and seize your computers: but particularly those belonging to your student son.

In the dying days of the Labour government, Lord Mandelson ushered in a law to allow Internet users to be cut off for receiving mere allegations of copyright infringement. In a foretaste of the later protests against SOPA, PIPA, and ACTA, this offensive piece of legislation became the focus of widespread Internet protests.

Rumours circulated, were reported in the Mail, Sun and Guardian that Bruce Willis wanted to sue Apple over his downloads. It wasn't true, but there is a kernel of fact: you really cannot legally pass on your digital music collection in your will.

I am not an economist. Most of us aren’t and bluntly most of what people advocate economically is rather prejudicial. My prejudices include that I have felt there is a role for the European Union. Like many people I have been rethinking what I might be supporting in the wake of the Euro crisis.