If you have been observant in your travels, no doubt you have noticed we are not as “social” in this age of electronic “social media.” People in airports, bus stations, even parks, etc. are not talking to each other but rather talking and texting on their cell phones, i-pads, tablets or some other electronic gadget. One person reported that in airports all you hear is the air conditioning units running, the hustle and bustle of activity but hardly any conversations between people. Welcome to the age of social media: facebook, twitter, etc.
However besides alienating people, there is a deeper, more sinister danger – that this social media is being used to track, trace and database the unsuspecting user of these so-called social media devices. Ethan Huff, staff writer at Natural News has done some research into the matter. He states, “They are convenient, relatively easy to use, and help millions of people around the world stay connected with family and friends, at least digitally. But social media portals like Facebook and Twitter are increasingly being exposed as what appear to be bait-and-switch spying networks funded, and potentially even run covertly, by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and other government agencies. And this is all apparently being done for the purpose of gathering real-time data on the private lives of individuals willing to freely post such information for the world to see.
“It is something that serious investigative journalists and skeptics alike have suspected for years, especially as sites like Facebook have gradually and quietly eliminated users’ access to the privacy controls that once kept their information ‘classified’ by default. Today, Facebook is literally an open book of information that is freely available not only to the rest of the internet, but also to numerous government agencies that many years ago invested millions of dollars to make social networking sites like Facebook what they are today.”
How did Facebook get the “seed” money to get started? The venture was ensured success by a capital firm that is linked to a CIA front group. According to Huff, “When Facebook was first getting off its feet, it turns out, the company received a huge cash injection from a venture capital firm known as Accel Partners. According to reports, Accel’s head, James Breyer, was a former chairman at National Venture Capital Association, where he served on the board with Gilman Louie, the CEO of another venture capital group known as In-Q-Tel.
“According to In-Q-Tel’s ‘Mission’ page, the group, which invested nearly $13 million during Facebook’s early days, was first launched in 1999 as a catalyst for keeping the CIA up-to-date with the latest information-gathering technologies. Not surprisingly, the primary purpose of In-Q-Tel is to ‘build relationships with technology startups outside the reach of the Intelligence Community,’ and partner with private sector groups who are willing to ‘co-invest in (its) portfolio companies.’
“If you connect the dots here, it becomes clear that Breyer’s expertise is in connecting the CIA with private enterprises like Facebook and Twitter that focus on gathering information, whether it be for marketing or some other purpose. And it appears as though the CIA front group In-Q-Tel saw a unique opportunity to use newfangled social media to gather intelligence in a completely new way, without actually having to gather it at all, at least in the traditional sense.
“’We have to look at where the seed money came for these social networks,’ explained investigative journalist Wayne Madsen to RT back in 2011 about the CIA connection to social media. ‘We do know that the Central Intelligence Agency through In-Q-Tel, its venture capital firm, provided a lot of seed money for many of these companies that developed these social networking operations and programs. So people have to be aware that when they put personal information online, they’re basically doing the CIA’s job for them.’” (Natural News – “Facebook, Twitter and Other Social Media Sites are an Elaborate Spying Scheme” by Ethan A. Huff. Dec. 28th, 2012).
The obvious conclusion one can draw from this is that nothing on the internet is private or sacred, especially when it is posted on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Through such social media networks Big Brother tracks, traces and databases your daily activities and over time establishes a profile of all your habits, family history and much more. You no doubt, have heard of the expression, “Your life is an open book.” Well now it is an open Facebook.
Also be aware that these surveillance plans are expanding and the technology is becoming much more sophisticated than ever before. The ability of the government to monitor and spy on you is much more advanced than you are being told. This is being done all in the name of “keeping us safe” – the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has expanded into the areas of health data, terrorism concerns and more. “Under the ruse of collecting and analyzing ‘health-related data,’ DHS is testing whether scanning sites like Facebook, Twitter and others ‘could help identify infectious disease outbreaks, bioterrorism or other public health and national security risks,’ GovInfo Security reported.” (Natural News – “Homeland Security Plots Ways to Spy on Americans Through Social Media Surveillance” by J. D. Hayes. Nov. 22, 2012).
The federal government has spent $3 million in a one year contract with Accenture Federal Services , the firm that provides the online spyware. This pilot spy project to track all the health related data of individuals is called bio-surveillance.
This is only one example of how Big Brother is tracking, tracing and databasing the private lives of individuals.
Seven Ways to Minimize the Dangers of Social Media
[Note: These points are taken and adapted from James Smiths’s “The Seven Ways to Stop the NSA From Gaining Intel on You.” Jan. 28, 2014]
1. Get rid of your smart phone. Your smart phone is the first way the NSA (National Security Agency) can get into your private files and records – and, into your private activities. From your location to your banking information, your smart phone is a liability. Changing to a simple cell phone will put you off the Facebook, Twitter “radar” of the NSA. But despite your best efforts the NSA may still be able to track your movements and locations. There is only one sure fire way you can keep Big Brother from tracking you. James Smith explains how. “Open the back of the cell phone and locate the GPS chip … and apply a hot soldering iron to the center for a few seconds. Repeat a few times. That will damage the chip to the point of being unreliable or inoperative.
2. Delete your Facebook account. Actually it is best to get rid of all social media accounts. Smith states, “Facebook is losing more followers than President Obama and Twitter is REALLY overpriced for the value they hold. Private information should stay private. No one, including the NSA, needs to know of problems in your personal life.”
3. Use your e-mail only for business issues. Regarding e-mails Smith tells us, “Email is one of the fastest forms of communication. But by spending a modest 50 cents, you can hand write a simple letter to loved ones on the current issues in your life. It doesn’t matter if you are a poor writer – the recipient only knows that you cared enough to write them. Hand-written letters are becoming a lost art. So help preserve something for future generations. The NSA can scan emails within a millisecond, but it requires time to open letters, scan them, generate an OCR replica, and translate that into useable text, and then close up the letters.” In other words, if Big Brother wants your private information, they are going to have to work for it. So don’t make it easy for them by using social media or email.
4. Limit the amount of phone calls you make. Private family or social plans should not be discussed on the phone. Smith advises, “It’s one thing to call home and find out what the missus needs from the grocery store. And it’s another to carry out detailed plans for a weekend hunting trip. Telling your friend over the phone to have them bring their .50 cal BMG for target practice only lets the NSA know your friend has a .50 cal BMG! Save these types of conversation for #6.”
5. Engage in one-on-one real-time conversations. Your family life or social plans is none of Big Brother’s business. You should be able to express your love for a spouse or family member without the NSA sticking their nose into it. Such private conversations should be conducted outside the social media trap. They cannot be tapped into unless Big Brother sends a drone to your house or bugs it. That takes time and resources to make that happen. Time and resources they don’t have.
6. Have more family gatherings and discussions in real-time. Any social plans, survival plans or discussions on important family plans especially in regard to End Time events or Big Brother government, should be held in real time outside the social media trap. That means you don’t use the electronic media (Facebook, Twitter, Skype, etc.) but conduct your conversations with family members or friends in real-time, not cyber-space.
7. Revive old traditional Christian family customs. The Christian family is the foundation to a healthy Christian society. We have lost most all our Christian traditions and values. We have allowed moral corruption and electronic enslavement to soften society. That makes society ripe for Big Brother control especially through social media technology. Mr. Smith suggests, “Have dinner as a family.” He says, “Having dinner as a family strengthens the family unit and has since the beginning of time. Study after study has shown that dinners as a family strengthens the bond that ties us together. The NSA will have to spend incredible resources to listen into your conversation every night. Amplify that 100,000,000 times, and you can see where the power of family can deny the government spying on all of our lives with ease. Family dinners give us the opportunity to privately discuss prepping plans, vacations, and to air personal grievances without letting it leech out into the public arena. And for good measure, keep the cell phones somewhere else. And if someone says something that bothers you – talk to them face to face. Don’t take it to social media for all. Including NSA, to know. If it was good enough for the 1950’s, when the government couldn’t spy on all of us, it’s good enough for 2014. We need less government intrusion, and more family commitment. We need each more Mom and Dad, and not Big Brother or Big Sis to advise us. Because what Mom and Dad does will be out of love. Big Brother/Sis will act out of a need to control and make us conform.”
It is a pity that most people who use such social media will not see such warnings or having seen the warnings, will not believe it. Thus they will continue to provide Big Brother all the data about their private lives that Big Brother needs to establish a profile on them. They will learn too late that they have been caught in the www (666) social media web (the internet). That has been the plan of Big Brother all along.
[See previous article “Facebook and Other Big Brother Surveillance,” Shrine News, Vol. 15, Winter, 2013. Also posted on our website.