According to CNET, due to U.S. sanctions, Microsoft had to deny service to Windows Live Messenger users in Sudan, Syria, North Korea, Cuba, and Iran. Microsoft did not have a choice but to submit to the U.S. government on this issue. I find it amazing that something like this can happen. While we are at disabling communications, perhaps we should go the extra mile and deny access to services such as Google Earth and maps which could certainly be used as well for planning terrorists activities. We are in the information age. What can we do to safeguard our digital services and assets? Is technology a right or a priviledge? What would stop users of these countries from using a proxy to gain access again to such services? These are questions that a global society needs to answer. Policies and guidelines need to be put into place. I see a future where biometrics will be used to validate identities and services are tied to the user. This will most likely happen with cloud computing. We won’t need personal computers anymore…we just need a terminal and the cloud and with a touch of a finger or a blink of an eye we will be surfing in the cloud.

Technorati Tags: Microsoft, Windows Live Messenger, Politics, Ethics, Tjchan, Just Another Mobile Monday, JAMM