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Comment by renlo | Hacker News Reader

When websites become regulated web developers will be like the general contractors of today. Only licensed web developers will be able to legally build websites, keeping everything up to the regulatory code. There will be inspectors and red tape.

I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

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Building codes are there for a reason. Have we had our equivalent of Tacoma Narrows or Triangle Shirtwaist yet? The event that Schneier said would be the "privacy Exxon Valdez"? Possibly the OPM hack qualifies as the latter.

Provided we get codes that recognise the difference between personal, small business, and large business, it won't be so bad.

Various governments are already attempting to push "building codes" for privacy in software.

http://gadgets.ndtv.com/internet/features/deleting-a-whatsap...

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/07/08/421251662/...

You cite two examples against privacy, but not the EU (mostly) pro-privacy data protection rulings. Or accessibility requirements.

In the long term trying to preserve privacy entirely through guerilla action isn't going to work (see China), and it certainly isn't going to work for everyone, so we need to take advantage of the normal democratic channels to achieve the right changes.

IMHO certainly not a good thing. The Internet needs less centralisation, not more.

Why not have both?

It's interesting you say this. My father-in-law has worked in a number of quite heavily regulated industries (heating and building, for the most part), and often refers to what I do as being "the wild west". I think he mostly views it as a positive and regularly talks about making hay whilst the sun is shining...

Well, in the US at least, there is a homeowner exemption, meaning that you can do the work unlicensed as the homeowner, it still has to be inspected though.

The effective inspection requirements vary. In rural areas outside of city limits (with the possible exception of really wealthy counties) no remodel is inspected ever. In suburban areas outside of city limits inspection is more likely if plumbing or electricity is involved, but is by no means universal. My impression is that most severe problems are caught by the home inspectors that mortgage lenders require.

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