Mass surveillance
Subtitle: who is watching the watchers?
Publisher: Council of Europe
Published: 2016
Place of publication: Strasbourg
Language: eng
Number of pages: 96
ISBN-13: 9789287181046
Subjects: Intelligence service; Law and legislation; Electronic surveillance; Right of Privacy; Computer networks; Safety measures
Description: "The disclosures by Edward Snowden since June 2013 revealing mass surveillance and large-scale intrusion practices have provided compelling evidence of the existence of far-reaching, technologically advanced surveillance systems. Put in place by United States intelligence services and their partners in certain Council of Europe member states, these systems are aimed at collecting, storing and analysing communication data, including content, location and other metadata, on a massive scale. In several countries, a massive "surveillance-industrial complex" has evolved, which risks escaping democratic control and accountability and threatens the free and open character of our societies. The surveillance practices disclosed endanger fundamental human rights, including the rights to privacy, freedom of information and expression, and the rights to a fair trial and freedom of religion. Given the threat such surveillance techniques pose, how can states uphold these fundamental rights and ensure the protection of privacy and Internet safety in the digital age? This book presents, in its first part, the report of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and, in its second part, the legal expertise of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (the Venice Commission)"--Back cover.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references.
Table of contents: title: Part 1. Mass surveillance: report of the Parliamentary Assembly; title: Part 2. The democratic oversight of signals intelligence agencies / European Commission for Democracy through Law.