Sex offenders who live in the state of Georgia have lost a lot more privacy. A new law that went into effect today requires all offenders not only give authorities their Internet email address and screen names but also the passwords too.
Georgia is not the first state to enact such legislation. Utah was the first to require passwords as well as Internet handles to be turned over to authorities; there are currently 15 states that require email address and user names be turned over but not all require passwords.
State Senator Cecil Staton told MSNBC, "We limit where they can live, we make their information available on the Internet. To some degree, we do invade their privacy ... But the feeling is, they have forfeited, to some degree, some privacy rights."
To no surprise privacy groups like the Southern Center for Human Rights are concerned that that law may be going too far. Privacy is an important constitutional right but when others violate your rights, should their rights be stripped?