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Is the U.S. Turning Into a Surveillance Society?

Big Brother is now a realistic possibility

The United States has now reached the point where a total "surveillance society" has become a realistic possibility, the American Civil Liberties Union warns in a new report.

"Many people still do not grasp that Big Brother surveillance is no longer the stuff of books and movies," said Barry Steinhardt, Director of the ACLU's Technology and Liberty Program and a co-author of the report.

"Given the capabilities of today's technology, the only thing protecting us from a full-fledged surveillance society are the legal and political institutions we have inherited as Americans," he added. "Unfortunately, the September 11 attacks have led some to embrace the fallacy that weakening the Constitution will strengthen America."

The ACLU said that its report, Bigger Monster, Weaker Chains: The Growth of an American Surveillance Society, is an attempt to step back from the daily march of stories about new surveillance programs and technologies and survey the bigger picture. The report argues that even as surveillance capacity grows like a "monster" in our midst, the legal "chains" needed to restrain that monster are being weakened. The report cites not only new technology but also erosions in protections against government spying, the increasing amount of tracking being carried out by the private sector, and the growing intersection between the two.

"From government watch lists to secret wiretaps -- Americans are unknowingly becoming targets of government surveillance," said Dorothy Ehrlich, executive director of the ACLU of Northern California. "It is dangerous for a democracy that government power goes unchecked and for this reason it is imperative that our government be made accountable."

A recent illustration of the danger, according to the ACLU report, is the Pentagon's Total Information Awareness (TIA) program, which seeks to sift through a vast array of databases full of personal information in the hunt for terrorism. "Even if TIA never materializes in its current form," Steinhardt said, "what this report shows is that the underlying trends are much bigger than any one program or any one controversial figure like John Poindexter."

Steinhardt said that Americans haven't yet felt the full potential of the new technology for invading privacy because of latent inefficiencies in how government and businesses handle information. "Database inefficiencies can't be expected to protect our privacy forever," said Steinhardt. "Eventually businesses and government agencies will settle on standards for tying together information, and gain the ability to monitor many of our activities -- either directly through surveillance cameras, or indirectly by analyzing the information trails we leave behind us as we go through life."

The report was authored by Steinhardt and Jay Stanley, Public Education Director of the Technology and Liberty Program.

Department Of Homeland Security Inspector General Report Underscores Flaws In System For Settling Watch List Disputes (10/09/2009)
WASHINGTON – The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) inspector general today issued a report stating that the agency's process for clearing the names of travelers who have been mistakenly placed on government watch lists provides little or no relief for most travelers and is plagued by delays and inadequate and insecure information technology. The report further concludes that some aspects of the program, the Traveler Redress Inquiry Program (TRIP), lack oversight, and that in some cases the program's redress procedures lack necessary due process protections.

TSA Body Scanning Technology Strips Away Privacy (10/01/2009)
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has revealed plans to install 150 body scanning machines for primary security screenings at airports across the country. The American Civil Liberties Union strongly opposes the expanded use of this invasive technology, which amounts to a virtual strip search and reveals strikingly graphic images of passengers’ bodies, including intimate medical details like colostomy bags or evidence of mastectomy.

FCC Proposes Net Neutrality Rules (09/22/2009)
WASHINGTON – On Monday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) proposed expanded “net neutrality” guidelines that would require Internet service providers to treat all content and applications equally, regardless of their origin or messaging. The American Civil Liberties Union strongly supports these principles put forth by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, which would offer much needed First Amendment protections. The FCC is also calling on operators to make their management practices transparent to users, offering greater consumer protections.

ACLU Announces New Legislative Counsel For Technology And Privacy Issues (09/10/2009)
WASHINGTON – The American Civil Liberties Union today announced that Christopher Calabrese will be serving as Legislative Counsel for privacy-related issues for its Washington Legislative Office. Prior to joining the Washington Legislative Office, Calabrese served as Project Counsel to the ACLU Technology & Liberty Project, which monitors the interplay between cutting-edge technology and civil liberties. In his new role as Legislative Counsel, Calabrese will be working with members of Congress, their staff and federal agencies to keep Americans’ privacy safe from threats posed by the ever-expanding collection of personal information by the government and private sector.

National Coalition of Authors Urges Rejection Of Google Book Search Deal (09/08/2009)
NEW YORK – A coalition of authors and publishers – including best-sellers Michael Chabon and Jonathan Lethem, as well as leading security author Bruce Schneier – is urging a federal judge to reject the proposed settlement in a lawsuit over Google Book Search, arguing that the sweeping agreement to digitize millions of books ignores critical privacy and speech rights for readers and writers. The group of more than two dozen authors and publishers, represented by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the American Civil Liberties Union and the Samuelson Law, Technology, and Public Policy Clinic at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, filed an objection to the settlement today. The coalition is concerned that the collection and potential disclosure of personally identifying information about users who browse, read and make purchases online at Google Book Search will chill their readership.

Update - What's Wrong With Fusion Centers? (07/29/2008)

Report - What's Wrong With Fusion Centers? (12/12/2007)

What's Wrong With Fusion Centers - Executive Summary (12/05/2007)
A new institution is emerging in American life: Fusion Centers. Originally created to improve the sharing of anti-terrorism intelligence among different agencies, the scope of their mission has quickly expanded to cover "all crimes and all hazards." The types of information they seek for analysis has also broadened over time to include not just criminal intelligence, but public and private sector data.

AT&T; Shareholder Resolution on NSA Spying (01/17/2007)

ACLU Backgrounder on ATS (01/10/2007)

The Authors Guild, Inc., et al. v. Google Inc. - Privacy Authors And Publishers' Objection To Proposed Settlement (09/08/2009)

ACLU FOIA Request on ATS (12/13/2006)

Comments on Export Controls (06/28/2005)

ACLU of Rhode Island Complaint (05/25/2005)

State Department FOIA on RFID chips in passports (04/26/2005)

ACLU Statement Submitted to the House Judiciary Committee for a Hearing on the Google Book Settlement (09/10/2009)

ACLU Letter to the House Committee on Homeland Security in Support of the Border Security Search Accountability Act of 2009 (H.R. 1726) (07/22/2009)

ACLU Letter to the Department of Homeland Security Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Asking For An Investigation Into Improper Surveillance of Anti-War Activists in Maryland (03/31/2009)

ACLU Letter to the Department of Homeland Security Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Asking For An Investigation Into The Threat Management Division Of Federal Protective Services' Improper Monitoring Of Civil Activists (03/27/2009)

ACLU Letter to the Department of Homeland Security Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Asking For An Investigation Into A Missouri Fusion Center's Strategic Report (03/27/2009)

Fuzzy Math, Fuzzier List (07/21/2008)

Questions to Ask About Fusions Centers (11/21/2007)
The questions below will help you make the most of a meeting with Department of Homeland Security and Fusion Center personnel.

Response to AT&T; SEC Petition from As You Sow (01/17/2007)

AT&T; Petition to SEC to Omit NSA Resolution (01/17/2007)

Automated Targeting System (11/22/2006)

E-Verify Backgrounder (06/20/2008)
Proposals are making their way through Congress, including the SAVE Act (H.R. 4088), that would dramatically expand the government’s flawed “E-Verify” program – ensuring that millions of Americans will be barred from working. If passed, every employer in the United States will be required to verify the eligibility to work of every current and prospective employee, including U.S. citizens.

ACLU Real ID Scorecard (01/17/2008)
Real ID regulations earn a failing grade. Find out why.

Fuzzy Math and the Real Cost of Real ID (01/16/2008)
A persistent criticism of the Real ID Act since its enactment in 2005 has been the charge that the law is a massive unfunded mandate. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) initially estimated that nationwide implementation would cost over $23 billion, roughly in line with estimates from independent groups like the National Governors Association and National Conference of State Legislators.

Fact Sheet: Final Real ID Regulations (01/11/2008)
Compliance Deadlines. States need to do almost nothing to comply with Real ID before 2014 (or 2017 for those over the age of 50)DHS will grant an extension until Dec 31, 2009 to any state which requests one.Citizens of states who become “materially compliant” will be able to use their license for all federal purposes until 2014 (or 2017 for those over the age of 50). Material compliance under the regulations is essentially what states are already doing in the issuance of licenses (and only a fraction of what the Real ID statute requires).

Surveillance Cameras and the Attempted London Attacks (07/05/2007)