Kavanaugh’s Support for Spying on Americans Raises Concern

DAN SEWELL / The Associated Press Aug 28, 2018 Senate Democrats plan to grill the Supreme Court nominee on his involvement in the George W. Bush administration's counterterrorism policies, including the secret collection of Americans' personal data. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

A Private Investigator on Living in a Surveillance Culture

Judith Coburn / TomDispatch Aug 27, 2018 Now that we know we are surveilled 24/7 by the National Security Agency, Facebook, Google, hackers, the Russians, the Chinese and companies from which we've ordered swag on the internet, is there still any "right to be forgotten"? Dig deeper ( 10 Min. Read )

Ex-Obama Officials Shill, and Bill, for Big Tech’s Pentagon Deals (Video)

The Real News Network Jul 29, 2018 As Google faced an internal employee revolt over its involvement in the Pentagon’s drone warfare program, WestExec—a firm headed by veterans of the Obama administration—stepped in to help. The case highlights the deep ties between the tech industry and government officials, says Yasha Levine. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Amazon’s Facial Recognition Software Is Prone to Racial Profiling, Report Says

Ilana Novick / Truthdig Jul 26, 2018 An ACLU test of the tech giant’s Rekognition product confirms consumer advocates’ fears. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Walmart Patents Technology to Eavesdrop on Workers

Jessica Corbett / Common Dreams Jul 13, 2018 In addition to capturing conversations, the retail giant's spy system could also track the length of lines at the checkout counter, how many items are scanned and the number of bags employees use. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

How Much All-Seeing AI Surveillance Is Too Much?

MATT O’BRIEN / The Associated Press Jul 3, 2018 As face-scanning technologies find new applications in store checkout lines, police body cameras and war zones, developers struggle to balance business opportunities with difficult moral decisions. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

NSA Deletion of Call Records Is Raising Questions

DEB RIECHMANN and SUSANNAH GEORGE / The Associated Press Jun 30, 2018 The agency says "technical irregularities" were found in customer data collected from telecommunications companies. Data security and privacy rights advocates say the move shows deep flaws in the program. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

‘Do You Know Your Right of Publicity?’ (Audio and Transcript)

Staff and Robert Scheer / Truthdig Jun 23, 2018 "Scheer Intelligence" podcast host Robert Scheer and guest Jennifer Rothman cover a topic that was once the concern of a relatively few famous and powerful people but has now become just about everybody's business. Dig deeper ( 21 Min. Read )

In Win for Privacy, Justices Limit Cellphone Tracking by Police

MARK SHERMAN / The Associated Press Jun 22, 2018 The Supreme Court rules that police generally need a search warrant if they want to track criminal suspects' movements by collecting information about where they've used their cellphones. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

If You’re a Protester in Chicago, Big Brother Is Watching You

By Mick Dumke / ProPublica Jun 12, 2018 The Rahm Emanuel administration has continued the city's long, troubled history of snooping on groups exercising their First Amendment rights—and now state legislators want to let it use drones. Dig deeper ( 6 Min. Read )

‘We Live in a Golden Age of Surveillance’ (Audio and Transcript)

Staff and Robert Scheer / Truthdig Jun 10, 2018 Robert Scheer talks with Nate Cardozo, the attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, on the struggle to protect free expression, privacy and innovation in a hyperconnected world. Dig deeper ( 18 Min. Read )

Documents Show Private Intelligence Web Behind Global Surveillance Program

Max Blumenthal / Grayzone Project Jun 5, 2018 A partnership revealed in internal Cambridge Analytica documents highlights the connections between private intelligence firms and Western governments engaged in Middle East counterintelligence. Dig deeper ( 7 Min. Read )