Review by Choice Review
Boghosian (executive director, National Lawyers Guild) has written a fairly unbiased, balanced overview of government surveillance, corporate surveillance, and the mingling of the two. Extensive research and notes with popular, accessible media sources as well as scholarly and legal sources make this work approachable to the general public. There are plentiful examples and case studies, all backed with sources. While focused on the surveillance of protest organizations, other types of surveillance are covered. This is a great introduction for those beginning to read about the current state of surveillance and privacy. Privacy scholars will find the very recent case examples and logical arguments compelling. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readership levels. J.M. Keller Florida Coastal School of Law
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In a typical day "your image is caught on surveillance cameras at least 200 times," warns Boghosian, executive director of the National Lawyers Guild, in this well-researched dossier on the pervasive lengths the U.S. government and corporations will go to track citizens' personal habits. Rejecting the notion that the domestic "surveillance net" of technologies such as biometric scanning, drones, and RFID chips keep Americans safer from terrorism, the author argues that such relentless scrutiny makes Americans less free by silencing critics and encouraging complacency with waning expectations of privacy. Timely examples are provided, including one from a Pennsylvania school district which remotely monitored students via cameras on school laptops, as well as a breakdown of the police tactics used during the Occupy movement. These examples are carefully connected to their societal consequences: among the areas directly affected, claims the author, are free speech, attorney-client privileges, investigative journalism, and the ability to protest injustice. Boghosian concludes with a survey of organizations devoted to protecting civil liberties. But real freedom, she stresses, must be defended on the personal level through committed encouragement of dissent. An informative read for parents, students, and activists, especially those interested in the implications of technology in today's society. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
