Since the 9/11 attacks we have seen more and more governments making laws giving more power to intelligence agencies. In the USA this has been revealed by now famous Edward Snowden. My post started by watching his Vice interview which I really recommend you to watch as it shows the power of mass surveillance. Moreover I find this interview very enriching with regard to the current European political situation were we see political personalities advocating more surveillance for more security.
The primary information gathered by intelligence services is metada. With metadata, anyone can see who you called, for how much time and where. Even if you disabled the GPS they can see which cellphone tower received your call and therefore they can localize you. The other interesting thing I learned during my « draft day » in France, where soldiers would explain to young adults the different challenges of today’s world and the capabilities of the army, was that they can also turn on anyone’s phone even if it is off. For me it is a bit disturbing to know that now most of our countries have all this power…
Are New technologies making the world more free and democratic ?
I think that the debate is not about the present but about the future. The surveillance system that has been in place for many years now can be turned against us, what if a new Prime Minister or President would use this power to turn a « democracy » into a police state to ensure the regime’s stability. Other technologies can be used against us : some countries already did the experiment. Recently Algeria cut off the access to Social Media because of possible fraud during high school final examination. Algeria can be classified as an authoritarian regime by The Economist and in case the regime was threatened they could simply block social media as they were one of the key tools of protesters during the Arab Spring. Our governments are justifying this surveillance by saying that we would be in danger without it… In fact no terrorist attack has ever been stopped with mass surveillance in the US. Does this incremental increase in security justify the immense loss of privacy ?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucRWyGKBVzo Vice Interview with Edward Snowden
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-36585545
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index
http://www.washington.edu/news/2011/09/12/new-study-quantifies-use-of-social-media-in-arab-spring/
Very interesting post – I have had a class about this at Sciences Po and we have had this discussion as well. I believe this discussion is not just about whether surveillance makes our world safer, but also about ethics. Both France and the United States have the right to censor whatever they like without explanation, something a lot of people do not know. A question often asked is: how much privacy are you willing to give up for your safety? – Indicating that we can only be safer if we give up our privacy (because, after all, you have got nothing to hide right?). I believe this is untrue – I do not believe more surveillance leads to more safety, nor do I believe the state to ensure me that I have privacy. Next to that, I believe it is not just the government surveillance, but also large IT companies helping them to be able to have this surveillance. I also believe it does not make us more democratic/free, as you have to think about what you write/talk about in order not to be seen as a ‘threat’.
I will definitely watch the Vice interview with Edward Snowden you recommended!