Ian Collins Dismisses Notion Of 'Nothing To Hide, Nothing To Fear'

11 October 2016, 09:52 | Updated: 11 October 2016, 10:52

Should the government be allowed to listen to your phone calls? LBC's Technology Correspondent Will Guyatt says you don't need to worry if you've got nothing to hide. But Ian Collins dismissed that idea.

Police documents show that surveillance technology that indiscriminately harvests information from mobile phones is being used by at least seven police forces across the country.

Speaking on Ian's LBC show last night, Will said: "I would sooner have a service or a device like this if they truly believed that there was a reason to be monitoring your communication or communication in your area."

But Ian hit back: "So you don't mind living in a kind of North Korean state where the powers that be are able to listen in to your texts and phone calls.

"So it's being used for legitimate reasons. So they're trying to catch Dodge-Pop McDougall, who's peddling some Class A's down the road and they think 'If we whip up our aerial behind a bush Sarge, we can maybe capture him'.

"But as we do so we collar Will Guyatt downloading Peppa Pig. If that's the case then they've been able to get access to exactly what you're up to by dint of the fact they were trying to look at someone else. That means the state have abused their position."

However, Will insisted: "If you're not hiding anything, what's the worry?"

Who do you agree with? Are you happy with the state being able to listen to your calls and read your texts?