Computer and network surveillance
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Computer and network surveillance is the monitoring of computer activity and data stored locally on a computer or data being transferred over computer networks such as the Internet. This monitoring is often carried out covertly and may be completed by governments, corporations, criminal organizations, or individuals. It may or may not be legal and may or may not require authorization from a court or other independent government agencies. Computer and network surveillance programs are widespread today, and almost all Internet traffic can be monitored.[1]
Surveillance allows governments and other agencies to maintain social control, recognize and monitor threats or any suspicious or abnormal activity,[2] and prevent and investigate criminal activities. With the advent of programs such as the Total Information Awareness program, technologies such as high-speed surveillance computers and biometrics software, and laws such as the Communications Assistance For Law Enforcement Act, governments now possess an unprecedented ability to monitor the activities of citizens.[3]
Many civil rights and privacy groups, such as Reporters Without Borders, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and the American Civil Liberties Union, have expressed concern that increasing surveillance of citizens will result in a mass surveillance society, with limited political and/or personal freedoms. Such fear has led to numerous lawsuits such as Hepting v. AT&T.[3][4] The hacktivist group Anonymous has hacked into government websites in protest of what it considers "draconian surveillance".[5][6]
- ^ Broache, Anne. "FBI wants widespread monitoring of 'illegal' Internet activity". CNET. Archived from the original on 25 March 2014. Retrieved 25 March 2014.
- ^ Jeske, Daniel R.; Stevens, Nathaniel T.; Tartakovsky, Alexander G.; Wilson, James D. (17 April 2018). "Statistical methods for network surveillance". Applied Stochastic Models in Business and Industry. 34 (4): 425–445. doi:10.1002/asmb.2326. ISSN 1524-1904.
- ^ a b "Is the U.S. Turning Into a Surveillance Society?". American Civil Liberties Union. Archived from the original on 20 October 2009. Retrieved 13 March 2009.
- ^ Stanley, Jay; Steinhardt, Barry (15 January 2003). Bigger Monster, Weaker Chains: The Growth of an American Surveillance Society (PDF). American Civil Liberties Union (Report). Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 October 2022. Retrieved 13 March 2009.
- ^ Protalinski, Emil (7 April 2012). "Anonymous hacks UK government sites over 'draconian surveillance". ZDNet. Archived from the original on 10 April 2012. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
- ^ Ball, James (20 April 2012). "Hacktivists in the frontline battle for the internet". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 14 March 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2012.