Preview

Net Widening: Big Brother Is Watching You

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1620 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Net Widening: Big Brother Is Watching You
Privacy is a right that many Americans take for granted. Americans, for the most part, feel that they have privacy. But do they really? In order for one to achieve individuality and autonomy one must have privacy, which is the key factor. For the rapid advances in technology, however, one exchanges their privacy. Should one happen to use a computer to use the Internet, for example, their level of privacy is decreased substantially as you open the door to social control. As Orwell says in 1984, “Big Brother is watching you.” Ever since the creation of the Internet, more specifically the World Wide Web, the government has utilized Orwellian tactics of surveillance. “Many parts of the Internet are still kind of like the raw frontier and the Government wants to stake its claim” (TechnoCulture). For instance, in December of 1995, news was released concerning the Government’s intention to fund another ten thousand closed circuit surveillance systems. Even though civil libertarians were assured this action had no sinister motive, responses from most were leery to say the least (“Big Brother…”). This technology is very similar to that which Steven Mann, MIT computer specialist, uses. His “wearable wireless webcam” provides anyone logged onto his Internet home address live views of his daily routine.
“The Internet is sprouting eyes. And ears. And vending machines, hot tubs, coffeepots, robot gardeners, and model railroads. The armada of devices plugged into the Internet, in fact, is transforming the network into a bizarre place that falls somewhere between George Orwell’s 1984 and Candid Camera run amok” (TechnoCulture).
Intel currently uses the same technology for the cameras they sell for consumers to put on top of their monitors in order to be seen by others. This technology is inside your very computer monitor (“Eyes On The Net”). How do you know it’s not being utilized to oversee you? Is Big Brother watching you?
“A year ago, there were



Cited: Balkin, JM “Understanding Legal Understanding: The Legal Subject and the Problem of Legal Coherence” (1993) 103 Yale Law Journal 105-176 Schoeman. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984) 177. Orwell, George. 1984 New York, Signet. 1949 “TechnoCulture Archive” Home Page

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    The article “Visible Man” written by Peter Singer discusses the issues that are involved with the topic of privacy. Many people feel that they are comfortable with the actions they are taking but they do not realize the information they are putting out into the real world. Singer explains how government officials use cell phone providers to gain insight on certain individuals. The idea that is stressed in this article is that too much privacy is never good, especially with government officials because the confidential information that gets leaked informs society on what it going on behind the scenes. The more information one can gather about a topic, the more informed they will be; furthermore, being well educated on a topic will allow one…

    • 276 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    No, the NSA Does Not Spy on Everyone, Everywhere: Why the National Security Agency’s Data Surveillance Programs are Both Legal and Necessary…

    • 1237 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Big Brother Big Business takes a disturbing look at how the growth of the information society may be deteriorating the freedoms many people take for granted. More than ever before, technology is being used to monitor Americans. Driving habits are being documented, personnel are monitored, shoppers and patrons are observed and analyzed, and Internet queries are saved and utilized as evidence in the courtroom. It is Big Business which gathers the majority of the data about us. Yet, it is the government that is using it.…

    • 631 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety”. A famous quote by none other than Benjamin Franklin, and although he did not live to see it, his words would be part of almost every argument considering internet surveillance. This ongoing debate is immense because many different people from all aspects of society use the internet, so everyone is affected by the outcome of the debate. There is no easy solution when it comes to the balance between security and freedom, but in the end the right thing to do is to allow people to not be monitored when surfing the internet as it is a violation of the constitution, very impractical, and morally wrong.…

    • 2088 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Many people around the world use social media sites. However, many do not realize that governments are able to use surveillance programs to spy on them. According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, surveillance is the close observation, especially of a suspected spy or criminal and it can be defined as processes of information collection and processing. Surveillance on social media has its positives and negatives and people should know how to use it responsibly, critically and effectively. Surveillance programs endanger the privacy of each Internet user. The reason that surveillance is accepted is because it can help governments find terrorists and can help solve crimes. However, it is a concern for multiple people that there is no law or regulation on how governments are able to use the programs. Moreover, the surveillance programs are sold off the shelf to governments so…

    • 1321 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Cited: 1. Andreas, Teuber. “Philosophy of Law Had-Out Page”. Brandeis University. 5 Feb. 2004: Web. 18 March, 2013.…

    • 1761 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Privacy is a fundamental moral right in a democratic society. It is the right bestowed upon individuals that strengthen the freedoms of speech, press, association, and assembly which are crucial for a free, democratic society. However, advancement in technology threatens privacy and autonomy which reduces the control over private data and exposes individuals to undesirable consequences. Thus, a loss of privacy leads to a loss of an individual’s freedom in society.…

    • 1755 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Writings from the works of the authors in question immediately display a distinct difference in their trains of thought. Hobbes and Locke take different paths but come to a similar conclusion, that of the necessity for the creation of civil government as authority over men, this is the basic bond that connects them. Their reasoning behind such a conclusion, though, begins with their differing and separate foundations. This discrepancy is notable in their discussions and separate ideologies of various aspects of the state of nature. As a result, their political orders diverge accordingly. Both men look toward the creation of civil order in order to protect not only the security of the individual, but also the security of the state.…

    • 3997 Words
    • 16 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Moran, J. (2000, August 26). Big Brother May Be Watching Your Internet Use. Retrieved from BrainerdDispatch.com : http://brainerddispatch.com/stories/082600/tec_0826000038.shtml…

    • 3492 Words
    • 14 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Government Surveillance

    • 5533 Words
    • 23 Pages

    Imagine a world where your every move was being monitored. A dark world where it is no secret who you are, where you have been and who you associate with; now include who you love, who you pray to and what you just ate for dinner. The word privacy doesn’t exist in such world and it is such world that we are heading to.“Big Brother is watching you!” This quote by George Orwell couldn’t have been truer. Every aspect of our lives is being sorted through as Big Data this very moment. Government surveillance has prevailed by the name of security. But, is government surveillance of internet digital communications like social networks, cell phone calls, text messages, and emails really a public service of security? Or is it simply a form of short-term security with long-term dangerous effects to the freedom of the public? How much are we willing to give up in the name of so called security? I believe that the issue of government surveillance of the internet and digital devices is a very important and relevant issue in the current day where more and more, both young and old, are logging in to social media sites, buying cell phones, and depending on services like email and “in the cloud” storage. The government’s exploitation of Internet and digital data is slowly chipping away at our privacy, our civil rights and the future of democracy itself. This issue doesn’t only affect my own privacy but also more than 75% of Americans that use the Internet.…

    • 5533 Words
    • 23 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Before the introduction of our modern technological devices we’ve come to know and depend on, we were living in a predominantly paper centered world where “little thought was given to the electronic future where technology would have proved new tools not simply to process data but rather to collect information in unforeseen ways or to mine previously undetermined knowledge from data repositories” (Strickland and Hunt 1). Paper is not at the center of world anymore, now we are living in a digital centered world that doesn’t slow down. It is crucial to question how these modern devices are being used by the government regarding privacy interests of the public, especially since most of the public is living in the dark when it comes to how these devices work. These surveillance technologies are everywhere; in places most citizens don’t even realize. Does the public have any choice when it comes to their privacy or do they just trust their government to…

    • 684 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Closed-circuit Television cam is used to monitor and transmit signals from a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. CCTV’s are connected to the website for public viewing, to provide a service to customers, to be updated of the latest weather forecast from time to time. Wireless cameras do not require a video cable for video/audio transmission, simply a cable for power. Wireless cameras are also easy and inexpensive to install. Previous generations of wireless security cameras relied on…

    • 10498 Words
    • 42 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Best Essays

    For decades now law and society theorists have been preoccupied with attempts to explain the relationship between legal and social change in the context of development of legal institutions. They viewed the law both as an independent and dependent variable (cause and effect) in society and emphasized the interdependence of the law with other social systems.…

    • 1546 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    In real life, many people fear technology other than telescreens, some such as computers and the internet. A few years ago, a speech was given criticizing AOL and it’s internet services. Numerous users were concerned about the internet becoming dominated by certain, powerful groups such as “media giants,” media watchers tell BBC News. They feel it could “lead to an Orwellian society where consumers are spoon-fed homogenized…

    • 646 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Video cameras are at the heart of any home security system. Most systems now offer live streaming video surveillance via a mobile app. Look for a system that offers high-resolution cameras with minimal light, powerful night vision, and flexible viewing and recording…

    • 1547 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays