Yep, Skype is a webcam software which means it can be used in our tv's so Big Bro can have a look at us too...probably whether we like it or not. The wave of the future...and it's a tsunami!
31 comments
Sparky, I know it's hard to tell the difference, but I want you to think real hard. The one with the webcam is a computer monitor. It's usually in front of a keyboard and a mouse.
The one with the antenna in front of your couch is a tv monitor. It doesn't have a webcam.
You got all that? Sorry if I made your head hurt.
I have Skype, I have a TV, the two don't work together.
Why are all these Luddites on the Internet anyway?
I'M WATCHING YOU MWAHAHAHAHAHA
And, really, the book was written as a critique of Stalinism, totally dépassé in many respects.
Read the original post at the Watchman link above. Panasonic and LG are releasing TVs in North America that have a camera and the Skype function built in. So then all one would need additionally is a Web connection via Ethernet. Sounds cool to me!
Of course, the tin-foil mad hatters shudder to think of the Big Brother implications. Fortunately, as SleepNeed points out, BB can be thwarted with a little electrical tape over the camera iris when not in use. I do this with infra-red (IR) ports on laptops that cannot be disabled to prevent pop ups when it comes near other IR devices.
While there is no doubt an element of paranoia here, the technology to spy on people is no longer far fetched or difficult to deploy. Most of us carry around cell phones and subscribe to cable TV with a converter box. Cell phone microphones were turned on by the FBI to bug gangsters a few years ago and it was ruled admissible in court. I've not torn one open lately but who's to say cable boxes don't include a camera and/or microphone inside? It's assumed the connection is one way (cable provider -> TV) but, as an electrical engineer, I'm sure there's provisions for collecting information back from the boxes. That maybe just its health or viewing statistics but it could be a live feed of your living room.
(edited 21Jan10)
The OnStar satellite system for vehicles obviously has a microphone but there was a ruling in 2003 that the FBI could not spy on the occupants:
http://news.cnet.com/2100-1029_3-5109435.html
software != hardware. There are no cameras in your TV screen.
1984 is not reality. Close to, but not.
Unless I miss my guess, he thinks - convinced - that the IR sensor used by the remote is ACTUALLY a tiny camera. After all, it's round, it's got a lens, and it looks like a camera.
"so Big Bro can have a look at us too...probably whether we like it or not."
Well it's easy to prevent that. Place a monitor in front of the camera that shows any of the following: 1. Goatse, 2. 2 Girls 1 Cup, 3. Encyclopedia Dramatica. I doubt anyone would want to hack your Skype webcam then.
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
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