Democracy in Retreat
Democracy in Retreat
Democracy in Retreat
"Multivariate analysis indicates that economic elites and organized groups representing business interests have substantial independent impacts on U.S. government policy, while average citizens and mass-based interest groups have little or no independent influence."
It is in this context that one must think about the Snowden revelations.
Edward Snowden
PRISM: Large-scale collection of content from social media, email, etc. (Google, Facebook, Skype, Apple...)
XKEYSCORE: "Selector"-based surveillance of global internet traffic
BULLRUN: Program designed to exploit security / cryptographic weaknesses and introduce vulnerabilities ("backdoors") into popular platforms.
BLUFFDALE, UTAH: Massive data repository centers being built around the country.
Suggests the possibility of semi-permanent retention of global internet data.
“Rather than look for a single needle in the haystack, [Gen. Alexander's] approach was, ‘Let’s collect the whole haystack,’ ” said one former senior U.S. intelligence official who tracked the plan’s implementation. “Collect it all, tag it, store it. . . . And whatever it is you want, you go searching for it.”
Metadata
The government has appealed to the fact they only collect metadata about millions of users' interactions.
Is there any ethical difference between collecting data vs. metadata?
Metadata
Metadata can be just as useful, if not more so, than content.
In fact, the U.S. has relied on metadata in performing "signature strikes" - drone strikes made on the basis of patterns of behavior and communication (i.e., metadata).
Hence: Metadata is personal enough to get you killed.
So... why should we care?
Why it Matters
Why it Matters
Even if people do prefer safety over privacy, they were not given that choice - the policies were simply enacted in secret. Thus they are an affront to democracy.
Why it Matters
Why it Matters
It seems to violate the Constitution (Fourth Amendment - freedom from arbitrary searches).
Why it Matters
Why it Matters
By having a system of basic rights, and a democratic structure of checks and balances, the idea was to make tyranny impossible.
We are protected from tyranny not because we trust that our rulers will be good, but because the system itself is supposed to prevent tyranny.
Why it Matters
Granting total surveillance powers to the security apparatus means that we are not protected from tyranny.
If a tyrant succeeded in becoming president, they would know everything about their population and could use that information to crush dissent and expand their powers.
Why it Matters
If we accept total surveillance, then we are relying purely on our trust in our rulers to not abuse their power.
But the U.S. system was not founded on the idea of "trusting one's rulers" - quite the opposite.
Thus, the total surveillance state is deeply in contrast with important American ideals.
Why it Matters
The NSA model sets an example for the world that can easily be exported to truly authoritarian regimes.
This is already happening, thanks to private surveillance firms like Finfisher, who sell their technology to regimes like Egypt, Bahrain, Germany, Israel, etc.
Why it Matters
Why it Matters
"The targeted journalist, Lagacé, had enraged police officials by investigating their abusive conduct, and they then used surveillance technology to track his calls and movements to unearth the identity of his sources. Just as that scandal was exploding, it went, in the word of the Montreal Gazette, “from bad to worse” as the ensuing scrutiny revealed that police had actually “tracked the calls and movements of six journalists that year after news reports based on leaks revealed Michel Arsenault, then president of Quebec’s largest labour federation, had his phone tapped.”
Summary
(a) The policies were enacted in secret - therefore, retrospective debates about whether they are a good idea are a secondary matter.
(b) They undermine the constitutional checks on power that protect us from tyranny.
(c) They set an example of total surveillance that is already being exported to repressive regimes.
(d) Even in the West, they are used against journalists and activists to silence dissent and freedom of speech/press.
Why is Privacy Important?
Instrumental Reason: Certain information could bring us shame or harm if made public.
Rights-based Reason: People have a basic right to privacy over their person, belongings, ideas, and behavior.
Why is Privacy Important?
Public vs. Private Surveillance
Public vs. Private Surveillance
Privacy-by-policy vs. Privacy-by-design
Privacy-by-policy vs. Privacy-by-design
Privacy-by-policy vs. Privacy-by-design