SOC 2309: Law and Society ~ Exam 3: Part 4: Privacy and Surveillance

Chapter 12: Privacy and Surveillance

Justifications for Privacy: Does Privacy Matter?

Some people don’t care or are concerned about their privacy. “I have nothing to hide”, “The government knows everything anyways”, “It’s worth it to protect us”. Justice Brandeis described privacy as "the right most valued by civilized men."

What are the Justifications for Privacy?

Anxiety and Pressure, Creativity, Individuality, Democracy, and Security.

What did the ancient Greeks see privacy as?

Privacy as a retreat from involvement in society from the responsibility to make a contribution.

Justifications for Privacy: Anxiety and Pressure

Allows us to free ourselves from the anxiety of always being watched, being able to retreat from the commotion from the everyday world and confusions. We are able to gain a sense of personal balance.

Justifications for Privacy: Creativity

Allows us to think and reflect, exercise our imagination.

Justifications for Privacy: Individuality

Allows us to shape our environments in the way we live without conforming to the crowd. Free from the world; self-expressive.

Justifications for Privacy: Democracy

Allows us to listen and learn from one another.

Justifications for Privacy: Security

Allows us to control personal information from misuse.

Constitutional Law and Privacy: There are compelling state interest in limiting privacy in some cases, what are they?

To protect public safety, to protect public health, in cases of morality, and to promote the public welfare.

Constitutional Law and Privacy: To Protect Public Safety

Require safety belts, prohibiting possession of lethal chemicals.

Constitutional Law and Privacy: To Protect Public Health

Kids having to get vaccinations for school.

Constitutional Law and Privacy: In Cases of Morality

Incest or the sexual abuse of children.

Constitutional Law and Privacy: To Promote Public Welfare

Compulsory Education: The legal requirement for individuals to attend schools before reaching a certain age.

Privacy is a penumbral right, what exactly is a penumbral right?

An implied right

Privacy as a Penumbral Right: The First Amendment

Guaranteed right of association. The right to interact and talk to who we please.

Privacy as a Penumbral Right: The Third Amendment

The right against quartering soldiers in your home (the government cannot intrude).

Privacy as a Penumbral Right: The Fourth Amendment

Prohibition against unreasonable search and seizures, we have a right to be secure in our persons, houses, and papers in effect against unreasonable search and seizures. (The government cannot intrude).

Privacy as a Penumbral Right: The Fifth Amendment

Self-incrimination clause; we have the right to not be compelled to give evidence against ourselves.

Privacy as a Penumbral Right: The Ninth Amendment

We have a rights that are not specifically specified in the constitution, and the government cannot deny these rights just because those rights are not stated.

What do fundamental rights create?

A zone of privacy

The Constitutional right to privacy protects person from unwarranted government intrusions in how many ways?

Four ways

The Constitutional Right to Privacy

Intimate Relationships, Reproductive Right of Women (only at state level), Right to be free from widespread exposure of personal data, and Right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures.

Federal Laws Protecting Privacy: U.S. Privacy Act of 1974

Requires the government to inform people of the purpose for which that are collecting data. They cannot collect information for one purpose then use it for another purpose.

Federal Laws Protecting Privacy: Medical Records (HIPAA)

Medical providers cannot release sensitive personal medical information.

Federal Laws Protecting Privacy: Children’s Online Protection Act (COPPA)

Social media sites have to maintain private data records for children that are under 12 years old.

Federal Laws Protecting Privacy: Financial Credit and Consumer Records (CCPA)

Protects releasing credit information without your permission.

Federal Laws Protecting Privacy: Educational Records (FERPA)

Schools cannot release certain students records without permission from the student. Applies to students that are 18 and over.

Federal Laws Protecting Privacy: Video Records (VPPA)

Protects video rental records and in some states, bookstore sales and library records.

Federal Laws Protecting Privacy: Consumer Privacy

Only allows companies that does business in California; protects private information.

What is a Panopticon?

Proposed by Jeremy Bentham as a design for a circular prison that allows an observer to monitor all inmates without them knowing if they're being watched.

What is the Panopticon Effect?

Constant behavioral regulation when there is no privacy. For example, this is how people act on TV.

Government Surveillance: Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)

Procedures for electronic surveillance of threats to national security; international threats.

Government Surveillance: Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC/FISA Court)

A special court established to oversee requests for surveillance warrants against foreign spies and agents in the United States, operating under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

Government Surveillance: USA PATRIOT Act

A bill to intended to make it easier for the government to investigate terrorism by expanding the ability for the government to seize documents and records and wiretap modes of communication. Was passed after 9/11.

Opened the door to the sharing of information and coordination between national security officials and criminal investigators.

Created the National Security Administration and Terrorist Threat Center.

Monitored and detected threats via data valence and data mining.

Government Surveillance: Data-Valence

The reliance on data to track activities of Americans

Government Surveillance: Data Mining

The process of brining information together.

PRISM

Code name for NSA, a collection of internet communications

XKeyscore

A computer system

PRISM and XKeyscore

• Began in 2007

• Authorized via FISA and supervised FISC

• Existence was leaked by Showden

• Was allowed under section 215 of the PATRIOT Act

Domestic Crime Surveillance: Pervasive Surveillance

Significant numbers of Citizens are routinely monitored

Domestic Crime Surveillance: Predictive Policing

Determines which individuals are likely responsible for the violence in the community and which individuals are likely to be targeted by violence.

What are the various variable that are used to analyze and assign weighs in computing individuals “strategic” scores?

Criminal History, Weapons Offenses, Crimes of Violence, Age of First Arrest, and whether they have been a victim of a shooting.

Strategic Monitoring of Individuals: Hotspots

Using data to locate areas with high crime, which these areas are likely to have crime spikes.

What are other forms of monitoring?

Evidence Based Sentencing, Automated License Plate Readers, Social media Monitoring Software, Cell Phone Data Collection, and Drones

Doorbell Cameras

Partner with police departments to share footage of millions of homeowner internet cameras. Police can request footage within a specific time and area,

What is China’s Social Credit System?

A system that takes peoples everyday behaviors and gives them a score and that impacts some of the befits that you can get within this system.

What is everyday behavior that would boost your score?

Taking care of your family members, doing charity work, positively influencing your neighborhood, picking up trash, etc.

What are everyday behavior that will lower your score?

Traffic offenses (e.g., drunk driving), illegally protesting against the government, if you do not visit your parents regularly, etc.

What benefits could be denied or taken away if you have a low score?

Denied drivers license or permit, exclude from booking flights or train tickets, less access to credit. Could lead to public shaming.

Private Sector Online Data Surveillance

Personal information is a commodity to be bought and sold

Private Sector Online Data Surveillance: Obvious Examples

Credit reporting agencies, CLUE

Private Sector Online Data Surveillance: Less-Obvious Examples

Shopper Loyalty Cards, Social media Sites, Credit Card Companies, Websites (i.e., cookies/browser reporting), Public Information Sharing, GPS Tracking

What does CLUE stand for?

Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange

What is CLUE?

Used by major insurance companies to assign an individually score to their insurance.

What are some examples of CLUE?

Homeowners insurance, Auto Insurance

How does CLUE impact your life?

For example, if your car insurance is really expensive it means you have a bad CLUE score. You have likely been in a lot of accidents or have acquired a lot of traffic tickets.

What are Data Aggregator Firms?

Consumer data collected by companies and sold for the purpose of target marketing. They have a lot of data/information about you; very detailed.

Example: Voluntary Questionnaires “What Harry Potter Character are You?”

Surveillance Capitalisms: In-Home

Google Home/Nest, Amazon Alexa, Facebook’s Portal, Smart Appliances, TV’s

What is some of the information/details that Data Aggregator Firms have on individuals?

Age, Gender, Employment, Incomes, Religion, Health, Interest, etc.

Tailored search results in Google include what?

Location, Search History, Web History, Social Networks

Cybercrime: Identity Theft

Stealing another person’s personal identifying information and using that information to fraudulently establish credit, run up debt, or take over existing financial accounts.

Cybercrime: Hacking

Individual, Corporate, Political

Cybercrime: Attack on A Network:

Viruses, DDoS Attacks, Hacking, Malware

Cybercrime: Crimes Carried Out Thought the Internet:

Identity Theft, Fraud, Phishing, Pretexting, Drug Dealing, Child Pornography, Copyright Infringement

Cybercrime: What is Pretexting?

Creating a false scenario to obtain information.

Other Federal Databases: CODIS

The combined DNA index system. DNA samples can be taken from charged and convicted criminals.

Other Federal Databases: AFIS

Automated Fingerprint Identification System

Other Federal Databases: New Developments

Facial/Iris Rec., Voice Rec., Gait Rec., Heartbeat Signature

How much privacy should we have?

Citizens in the European Union have significantly more privacy right than we do, while some countries have no privacy rights.

What is GDPR?

The General Data Protection Regulation is a European Union law that governs how organizations handle the personal data of EU residents.