Data Killed Privacy and We're All Accomplices

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Monday June 17, 2013 · 4:39 PM PDT

2013/06/17 · 16:39

Much has been written over the past few days about the NSA's recently unveiled surveillance program. The details about the program are still sparse and at the moment it remains unclear as to exactly what capabilities the program grants an analyst. That said, even the most permissive interpretation generally involves NSA employees the ability to see content from individuals without authorization from FISC.

However, this remains a mere tip of the iceberg for what is possible using technology that has largely already been developed and implemented in a smaller scale by casinos, the FBI, and even the Obama campaign. Yes, the problem is data. There's too much of it, and it can be used in surprising ways by law enforcement with equipment that already exists.

In this diary (my first one!), I'm going to give a brief overview of the state of Big Data and how relatively innocuous information could (is?) be used to predict whether a person might be engaged in illegal behavior - or whether they might do so in the future. The conclusions are purely speculative, but the results are very much within the realm of technological, budgetary, and legal feasibility. More after the fold.

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