The versions contained within are revised copies that were improved as a result from the presentations at the Canadian university. The intent for the workshops and this book is to advance the spirited debate on the appropriate policy governing new technologies. Lyon and Zureik have arranged this compilation of papers to open our eyes to the problems associated with new technology and in particular, current surveillance methods. These are the same places automobile dealers and credit card companies call to get a background check on perspective customers. The authors, Lyon and Zureik, argue that human lives are manipulated through the tracking of daily occurrences connected with our credit cards, driver's licenses, and any other computerized information system.
Privacy becomes a luxury of the past when new technologies are used to track personal lives.
Many angles to this discussion are explored throughout the various papers, with an emphasis on the practical, legal, and organizational consequences. A common theme to this part of the book deals with a surveillance trend that tends to monitor workers instead of the work to be accomplished. More and more employers are found to be misusing surveillance methods, which is a clear invasion of privacy and violation of the constitution. . This is especially true of smaller corporations, where so much work and profits are riding on each employee. All three essays in this section of the book mention the negative effects surveillance creates for employees.