The law can find a reason to convict anyone if they have enough data on them 🧠
If the law, for what ever reason, wanted to target a specific individual, and they have collected enough data on that individual, then they can probably find sufficient evidence to find them guilty of something. This is the reason why many countries’ courts prohibit police from engaging in “fishing expeditions.” It’s the reason the US Constitution specifically prohibits general warrants documents that can allow the police to search for anything anytime.
But ubiquitous surveillence and data mining eliminates the ephemerality of our past words and actions. It is incredibely dangerous to live in a world where everything you do can be stored and brought forward against you at a later date. There is significant danger in allowing police to dig into these large data sets and find “evidence” of wrongdoing, especially in a country like the US with so many vague and punitive laws, which give prosecutors discretion to charge whom with what, and also with their overly broad material witness laws.
References
- Schneier, Bruce. (2015). Data and Goliath The Hidden Battles to Collect Your Data and Control Your World CHapter 7. Political Liberty and Justice (Location 1473). New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company.
Metadata
Type:🔴 Tags: Politics / Privacy / Surveillence Status:☀️