Statement A: The UK government are not planning to build a massive surveillance network to capture the traffic data of all internet users:

“GCHQ is not developing technology to enable the monitoring of all internet use and phone calls in Britain, or to target everyone in the UK,” the statement said. “Similarly, GCHQ has no ambitions, expectations or plans for a database or databases to store centrally all communications data in Britain.”

Statement A, revised: The UK government are not planning to build a massive surveillance network to capture the traffic data of all internet users.

Just not all of them simultaneously.

Or so they tell us. I feel so reassured :S

This popped up in my RSS reader:

Government will spy on every call and e-mail – Times Online

Ministers are considering spending up to £12 billion on a database to monitor and store the internet browsing habits, e-mail and telephone records of everyone in Britain.

GCHQ, the government’s eavesdropping centre, has already been given up to £1 billion to finance the first stage of the project.

Hundreds of clandestine probes will be installed to monitor customers live on two of the country’s biggest internet and mobile phone providers – thought to be BT and Vodafone. BT has nearly 5m internet customers.

Second story link

Coverage at The Register

I’m hoping, really hoping, that this is some kind of GCHQ policy analyst’s proverbial wet dream and nothing more.

Surely, the UK government can’t be considering this.

On the other hand, they do have a somewhat worrying track record…

Mielke would be proud.