Common threats
These are some common threats people face when they're thinking about defending their privacy and security. You may be concerned with none, one, a few, or all of these possibilities, and the plan you make depends on what your individual goals are.
8. Mass surveillance programs
Mass surveillance is the intricate effort to monitor the "behavior, many activities, or information" of an entire (or substantial fraction of a) population. It often refers to government programs, such as the ones disclosed by Edward Snowden in 2013. However, it can also be carried out by corporations, either on behalf of government agencies or by their own initiative.
Governments often justify mass surveillance programs as necessary means to combat terrorism and prevent crime. However, breaching human rights, it's most often used to disproportionately target minority groups and political dissidents, among others.
Despite growing mass surveillance in the United States, the government has found that mass surveillance programs like Section 215 have had "little unique value" with respect to stopping actual crimes or terrorist plots, with efforts largely duplicating the FBI's own targeted surveillance programs.2
Online, you can be tracked via a variety of methods:
- Your IP address
- Browser cookies
- The data you submit to websites
- Your browser or device fingerprint
- Payment method correlation
[This list isn't exhaustive].
If you're concerned about mass surveillance programs, you can use strategies like compartmentalizing your online identities, blending in with other users, or, whenever possible, simply avoiding giving out identifying information.