Privacy Versus Security in the Age of Global Terror

Cyber security has become a defining legal and political predicament of our time, and where it has been found ineffective, a sense of vulnerability has developed in society. The internet-age has challenged the implications and execution of personal and national security, as well as stirred issues about the concept of privacy. Due to rapid transformations in technology, it has become a difficult task for governments to give assurances of privacy to their individual citizens. Technological advancement has seen a proliferation of hackers who steal consumer data and misuse it for profit. At the same time, the threat of terrorism has instigated the use of new surveillance technologies to track and collect information on a massive, potentially threatening scale. Unrestricted mass surveillance by the US government, recently thrusted back into the public consciousness, has largely eliminated the right to privacy in a world that virtually relies upon electronic communication. Privacy and Security in the Age of Global Terror offers an insightful and timely look at how privacy has become one of the critical issues of discussion in this technological world. As internet democracy is one of the largest emerging agendas, Dr. Silva looks at how reformed practices are required to ensure protection against the surveillance of individuals.

Mario Silva is an accomplished author and international legal scholar. He is the co-author of Hanging By A Thread: Afghan Women’s Rights and Security Threats and of Tackling Hate: Combating Antisemitism. Dr. Silva is a Professional Fellow of the Privacy and Cyber Crime Institute and at the Institute for the Study of Corporate Social Responsibility at Ryerson University.