Stopping the Spies

218 pages. Temps de lecture estimé 2h43min.
In 2013, former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden leaked secret documents revealing that state agencies like the NSA had spied on the communications of millions of innocent citizens. International outrage resulted, but the Snowden documents revealed only the tip of the surveillance iceberg. More and more states are placing citizens under surveillance, tracking their movements and transactions with public and private institutions. Jane Duncan assesses the relevance of Snowden’s revelations for South Africa. In doing so she questions the extent to which South Africa is becoming a surveillance society governed by a surveillance state. Duncan challenges members of civil society to be concerned about and to act on the ever-expanding surveillance capacities of the South African state. Is surveillance used for the democratic purpose of making people safer, or is it being used for the repressive purpose of social control, especially of those considered to be politically threatening to ruling interests? Duncan explores the forms of collective action needed to ensure that unaccountable surveillance does not take place and examines what does and does not work when it comes to developing organised responses. This book is aimed at South African citizens, academics, as well as general readers.Preface Acknowledgements List of Figures and Tables List of Acronyms Introduction Chapter 1  Theorising the surveillance state Chapter 2  Is privacy dead? Resistance to surveillance after the Snowden disclosures Chapter 3  The context of surveillance and social control in South Africa Chapter 4  Lawful interception in South Africa Chapter 5  State mass surveillance, tactical surveillance and hacking in South Africa Chapter 6  Privacy, surveillance and public spaces in South Africa Chapter 7  Privacy, surveillance and population management: the turn to biometrics Chapter 8  Stopping the spies: resisting unaccountable surveillance in South Africa Chapter  Conclusion Notes Select Bibliography Index