NCJ Number
205624
Journal
Journal of Law and Society Volume: 31 Issue: 2 Dated: June 2004 Pages: 194-220
Editor(s)
Philip A. Thomas
Date Published
June 2004
Length
27 pages
Annotation
Drawing on published research, observations, and analyses of relevant trends, this article explores the longer term impact of the post September 11 changes in the security and privacy discourse as it relates to the European Information Society.
Abstract
The attacks of September 11, 2001 on the United States constituted a major event in world history. Following the attacks of September 11, there was a distinctive shift in actual levels of security surveillance over European citizens. This article reviews how post September 11 security issues intersect with current and emerging technologies, particularly those in relation to identity, location, home, and work that will form the backbone of the European Information Society; and explores the complexities generated by the way that these technologies work, sites of national resistance, and formal bureaucratic roles. The first part of the article outlines the main security fears following September 11th followed by a reflection upon the actual and likely impacts of the changes in crime and security. The third part briefly explores the various crime and security issues relating to identity-related technologies, as well as mobile and located based technology. The fourth part draws out some lessons learned from the existing European experience of using private-public partnerships in the policing of crime through bureaucratic-technical solutions. The final part of the article discusses the broader security and privacy issues. In conclusion, a range of hard and soft security strategies have either been introduced or are currently being considered, by governments following the events of September 11th, some of which might have been previously rejected. In addition, there have been some clear transformative changes since September 11th, such as the increased use of actuarial intelligence gathering through automated mass surveillance technology. In response to the debate over the relationship between privacy and security, the differing states of development of each of the prospective technologies suggest that full commercial roll-out is still some years away.