Internet surveillance on the rise

Chris Soghoian (far right) talks about Internet Privacy with students Tuesday. PHOTO: Chris Corbaz

Addressing an auditorium full of students at Gaylord Hall on Tuesday, technologist Chris Soghoian warned students about the increasing surveillance being done by companies through the Internet.

Soghoian, who was recently called “the most prominent of a new breed of activist technology researcher,” by The Economist magazine, shed light on how companies are intruding on its users.

“Companies to whom we entrust our private data, the Googles, the Facebooks; all of these companies are legally required by law to provide surveillance systems to the government,” explained Soghoian.

Many people are not aware that surveillance is being done on a massive scale. Companies do not advertise this feature in their service, so essentially consumers are unaware of the privacy intrusion that can be done.

However, it is not just these companies that have the potential to gain access into your personal life.

“The government also gets to come along for the ride too. So I really wanted to get information about this and expose it,” said Soghoian.

Mary Clancy, a freshman pre communication disorders major at OU, was not aware of this surveillance. “I was surprised by how much access others have to what I would have previously considered private and protected,” said Clancy.

She added that she will be more careful about what she posts online from now on.

 Soghoian was brought in as a part of the Future of Privacy in a Socially Networked World put on by Gaylord College.