“Mass surveillance of an entire population is traditionally the hallmark of a totalitarian state,” says Patrick Eddington, policy analyst in civil liberties and homeland security at the Cato Institute. “This SIM card registration campaign is a clear indicator that, unfortunately, Pakistan is on the path to becoming a truly totalitarian state.”
A former CIA intelligence analyst, Eddington calls the SIM card plan a “tacit admission” that Pakistan’s intelligence service, the ISI, has proven itself unable to penetrate terror cells using more traditional human and signals intelligence tools. Beyond the potential abuses of an individual’s privacy, he says such a massive collection of data as is being proposed will likely have little to no effect.
“Terrorist groups survive in part because they’re adaptable,” he told VOA. “So this campaign in Pakistan will not actually solve the problem because the terrorist groups will change their communication techniques and modalities in order to get around this SIM card registration campaign.
A former CIA intelligence analyst, Eddington calls the SIM card plan a “tacit admission” that Pakistan’s intelligence service, the ISI, has proven itself unable to penetrate terror cells using more traditional human and signals intelligence tools. Beyond the potential abuses of an individual’s privacy, he says such a massive collection of data as is being proposed will likely have little to no effect.
“Terrorist groups survive in part because they’re adaptable,” he told VOA. “So this campaign in Pakistan will not actually solve the problem because the terrorist groups will change their communication techniques and modalities in order to get around this SIM card registration campaign.
