Recent events have highlighted, underlined and bolded the fact that the United States is performing blanket surveillance on any foreigner whose data passes through an American entity — whether they are suspected of wrongdoing or not. This means that, essentially, every international user of the internet is being watched, says Mikko Hypponen. An important rant, wrapped with a plea: to find alternative solutions to using American companies for the world’s information needs.

As computer access expands, Mikko Hypponen asks: What’s the next killer virus, and will the world be able to cope with it? And also: How can we protect digital privacy in the age of government surveillance?