Kazakhstan government to spy on internet users
As of January 1, Kazakhstan will require the presence of a "national security certificate" on every internet-capable device in the country, the Financial Express reported.
The law will let the government spy on virtually any online traffic on devices with the certificate installed, whether or not it's encrypted. Carriers will have to keep tabs on users who don't install the code, too, so that none slips under the radar.
The move definitely won't be appreciated by privacy-minded residents, since it gives officials the power to spy on virtually anyone -- and in Kazakhstan, that often means challengers to the political status quo.
To boot, the measure could easily produce unintended consequences. Criminals could easily steal sensitive info if they find a way to abuse the certificate. Other countries, meanwhile, could use it to spy on both Kazakhs and their own citizens.
The certificate will work on Android, iOS, OS X and Windows, but it won't fly on Linux. Moreover, it could easily fall apart if enough people refuse to install the certificate, or if vendors revoke the certificate to render it useless, according to media reports.