Thursday, March 28, 2024

Big Brother is Watching You – But Who’s Watching Them

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It should be no surprise that state-sponsored surveillance is getting easier, more pervasive and more intrusive. Increasingly sophisticated and cheap, technology makes it possible, and is eager to go along for the ride.

How widespread are the state's eyes these days? According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation's (EFF) Atlas of Surveillance Database, is bigger than ever:

The Atlas of Surveillance has now hit 10,000 data points. It contains at least partial data on approximately 5,500 law enforcement agencies in all 50 states, as well as most territories and districts.

What does this figure mean?

…this milestone sadly also reflects the massive growth of surveillance adoption by agencies. High-tech spying is no longer limited to well-resourced urban areas; even the smallest hamlet's police department might be deploying powerful technology that gathers data on its residents, regardless of whether those residents are connected to a criminal case. We've seen the number of partnerships between police and the home surveillance company Ring grow from 1,300 to more than 2,000. In the two years since we first published a complementary report on real-time centers — essentially police tech hubs, filled with wall-to-wall camera monitors and computers jacked into surveillance datasets — the number of such centers in the U.S. has grown from 80 to 100.

In short, there are more ways to snoop on people without law enforcement having to resort to constitutionally-required nuisances like warrants than ever – and the numbers are getting worse.

You can search the Atlas for information on law enforcement surveillance where you live. The page will show you links to articles on agreements law enforcement, state and local agencies, and others have made with tech companies to keep an eye on things. And you.

No warrant required.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.

READ NEXT: CDC Spied on 20 Million Cell Phones in National COVID Surveillance Program >>

Norman Leahy
Norman Leahy
Norman Leahy has written about national and Virginia politics for more than 30 years with outlets ranging from The Washington Post to BearingDrift.com. A consulting writer, editor, recovering think tank executive and campaign operative, Norman lives in Virginia.

3 COMMENTS

  1. We need a follow up to this article. Ron Johnson demanded info from the CDC that was supposed to be provided by last May. Did the CDC even respond? If so, what info came of it?

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