Schneier on Security

25 Years of Mass Surveillance Is Enough

Refract AI Intelligence Digest

BLUF

The legal and technical framework for mass surveillance established after 9/11 must be dismantled as it no longer serves its intended security purpose.

NEWS

Originally published in Lawfare, this essay details the shift from targeted wiretaps to broad internet backbone tapping and metadata collection following the September 11 attacks. The authors contend that this surveillance architecture has expanded far beyond national security needs over the last quarter-century.

Why I Care

Unchecked mass surveillance threatens individual privacy rights and civil liberties for all citizens without delivering proportional security benefits.

Next Steps

Legislators should initiate reviews of surveillance authorities immediately, while citizens must contact representatives to demand targeted oversight reforms before the next authorization cycle.

This essay was written with Cindy Cohn, and originally appeared in Lawfare. One of the many legacies of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 is the government-wide shift from targeted surveillance—such as individual wiretaps or pen register/trap and trace orders—to mass surveillance techniques—such as tapping into the internet backbone or mass collection of telephone or internet metadata. The legal and technical architecture of modern mass surveillance, initially framed as a necessary defense against terrorist threats, has grown far beyond that justification and national security in general. Mass surveillance is now a routine tool used by law enforcement. ICE uses it in...
Back to Blog Listing

Source: Schneier on Security ·

This digest was generated by Refract AI Collective to help the public sector security community stay informed.