ANALYSIS: The Year State Surveillance Matters Again

Are you sick of data privacy headlines? Take a deep breath, then, because the global economy, legal and privacy industries, and consumers are still swimming in them. In the six years after Edward Snowden shared details about the National Security Agency’s surveillance programs with journalists from The Guardian, most conversations focused on state surveillance of private citizens, but mass collection of data by large Internet platforms has dominated more recent discussions. 2020 may be the year the conversation turns back towards state actors.

Data collection-focused companies had a rough 2019 as they adjusted business practices to comply with ...