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No Place to Hide
In No Place to Hide, award-winning Washington Post reporter Robert O'Harrow, Jr., pulls back the curtain on an unsettling the emergence of a data-driven surveillance society intent on giving us the conveniences and services we crave, like cell phones, discount cards, and electronic toll passes, while watching us more closely than ever before. He shows that since the September 11, 2001, terror attacks, the information industry giants have been enlisted as private intelligence services for homeland security. And at a time when companies routinely collect billions of details about nearly every American adult, No Place to Hide shines a bright light on the sorry state of information security, revealing how people can lose control of their privacy and identities at any moment.
Now with a new afterword that details the latest security breaches and the government's failing efforts to stop them, O'Harrow shows us that, in this new world of high-tech domestic intelligence, there is literally no place to hide.
As O'Harrow writes, "This book is all about you and your personal information -- and the story isn't pretty."
Now with a new afterword that details the latest security breaches and the government's failing efforts to stop them, O'Harrow shows us that, in this new world of high-tech domestic intelligence, there is literally no place to hide.
As O'Harrow writes, "This book is all about you and your personal information -- and the story isn't pretty."
368 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2005
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340 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
January 13, 2008
QUOTE: “Think about your daily routine, and you will begin to understand….When you wake up and sign on to the Internet and browse the Web, companies record where you go, the pages you access, anything you order or buy. If you go to a newspaper site, it records everything you read, because you have voluntarily registered and they know who are you [sic:]. Suppose you turn on your TiVo machine? That act is being recorded. So is the fact that you’re watching last night’s Daily Show.
“You use your debit card for breakfast on your way to your office. Or you hop in your car and pass through E-ZPass. There are cameras at the parking garage, subway station, and, of course, the bank and Starbucks. Depending on the city you live in, a camera system is monitoring the streets, even at stoplights. If you take money from the ATM at lunch, there’s a growing chance that artificial intelligence is probing that transaction for signs you may be a terrorist or money launderer or have ties to unsavory people.
“At work, you use a magnetic strip ID card, or an iris scan or a fingerprint or face recognition system to enter the building. The time and date of your arrival are kept, possibly forever, in a computer system. Your exit at lunch is recorded by one computer. The fact you stopped by the pharmacy to pick up your prescription is recorded by others, some of them run by entities across the country known as pharmacy benefit managers. Your computer is a sensor, of course, and chances are the boss is recording the email you typed to your pal and the fact you ogled the swimsuit edition of a sports magazine online. There’s a better chance they’re recording you the old-fashioned way, with a camera, perhaps when you leave work early or take a cigarette break. Driving home in that new Cadillac? If so, you’re probably taking advantage of the global positioning system like Smith’s because, after all, it’s pretty nifty technology. At home, you can’t resist buying that sweater or book or “sensual gift” from a catalogue for your spouse. And when you call the 800 number to order, their computers are recording and taking note of everything: your phone number, name, voice, and key words that you use. That’s because the phone, linked to computers, has become a sensor, too.” [p. 284-285:]
“You use your debit card for breakfast on your way to your office. Or you hop in your car and pass through E-ZPass. There are cameras at the parking garage, subway station, and, of course, the bank and Starbucks. Depending on the city you live in, a camera system is monitoring the streets, even at stoplights. If you take money from the ATM at lunch, there’s a growing chance that artificial intelligence is probing that transaction for signs you may be a terrorist or money launderer or have ties to unsavory people.
“At work, you use a magnetic strip ID card, or an iris scan or a fingerprint or face recognition system to enter the building. The time and date of your arrival are kept, possibly forever, in a computer system. Your exit at lunch is recorded by one computer. The fact you stopped by the pharmacy to pick up your prescription is recorded by others, some of them run by entities across the country known as pharmacy benefit managers. Your computer is a sensor, of course, and chances are the boss is recording the email you typed to your pal and the fact you ogled the swimsuit edition of a sports magazine online. There’s a better chance they’re recording you the old-fashioned way, with a camera, perhaps when you leave work early or take a cigarette break. Driving home in that new Cadillac? If so, you’re probably taking advantage of the global positioning system like Smith’s because, after all, it’s pretty nifty technology. At home, you can’t resist buying that sweater or book or “sensual gift” from a catalogue for your spouse. And when you call the 800 number to order, their computers are recording and taking note of everything: your phone number, name, voice, and key words that you use. That’s because the phone, linked to computers, has become a sensor, too.” [p. 284-285:]
May 31, 2008
Best read in small doses, so as to prevent aneurysms caused by anger at short-sighted government.
September 28, 2018
Simply scary. Non-fiction horror and dated.
April 21, 2022
A really interesting topic, but some parts seemed to drag on a bit. Overall, quite fascinating.
February 5, 2015
The basics are these: companies you do business with (cell phone companies, grocery stores, banks, internet providers, credit card companies) are gathering vast amounts of information about you, and storing it in databases. The data they're gathering is far beyond what you'd expect them to keep -- where you go, what you purchase, how fast you drive, the digital imprint of your voice, facial recognition, the names of your friends and family, the price of your home, when you deposit your checks and pay your bills, fingerprints, DNA and other bio-data.
These companies are not only using this data to market to you, they're selling it to other companies that are data brokers, and they're making the information available to the government at almost every level (state, local, federal). The data brokers in turn sell the information to other companies, or they let the government have access to it -- often to look for terrorists, but increasingly to pursue other criminal investigation, and to try to anticipate if you "might" commit a crime -- and that speculation might be quite wild in nature.
Decades ago, people used to worry about the FBI having a "file" on them. Now, every single American -- from your two-month old child to your eighty-year-old grandmother -- has a government file.
Using the vast storehouses of data, the companies and the government have built data-mining software and artificial intelligence software that sifts through the data looking for anomalies and flagging items of interest. There are no laws about how these programs are written, what they look for, or how they tag or label you when they've analyzed your data, so you're basically guilty until proven innocent in the eyes of this software. This was what scared me most -- I used to never worry about data collection, because I figured no one would ever have time to sift through the data. It would take a team of five people to keep track of what I do all day. But this software eliminates that need -- you have a team of robots following you around. Unfortunately, due to the insufficiencies in their programming, they're somewhat retarded robots.
The data gathered about you could be riddled with errors -- typographic errors, mistaken identities, other people's inaccurate subjective judgments (I might be labeled a "liberal extremist" for example) and because you have no access to it, or idea what information is being collected, you have no recourse about correcting problems that might later affect you. O'Harrow lists example after example of people who have pursued and tried to correct mistakes about their identities that led to credit problems, flags on no-fly lists, insurance losses, criminal investigations, etc., only to have the bad data pop back up after being corrected again and again, because the information is passed back and forth from so many data collection agencies.
In addition, these data collection centers are extremely porous and insecure -- anyone and everyone could have access to them. O'Harrow also recounts list after list of abuse of personal data, by the employees of companies that collect it, by the data brokers selling it, by government officials at all levels. People are accessing the data for personal use -- to stalk attractive women, to hunt down ex-partners for revenge, to using in political campaigns, to sell the information on the black market, to commit burglaries and assaults and securities frauds. They're also using data in ways far beyond what was intended when it was gathered.
The laws regarding data gathering, storage, data-mining and security are decades behind current technology, so there's no accountability or recourse. There's very little regulation of who has access to your personal data, what they use it for, and how you can control it. I kept hoping throughout the book for some light at the end of the tunnel -- for O'Harrow to provide some examples of organizations who are pursuing laws to regulate all these databases of information, but there was precious little.
These companies are not only using this data to market to you, they're selling it to other companies that are data brokers, and they're making the information available to the government at almost every level (state, local, federal). The data brokers in turn sell the information to other companies, or they let the government have access to it -- often to look for terrorists, but increasingly to pursue other criminal investigation, and to try to anticipate if you "might" commit a crime -- and that speculation might be quite wild in nature.
Decades ago, people used to worry about the FBI having a "file" on them. Now, every single American -- from your two-month old child to your eighty-year-old grandmother -- has a government file.
Using the vast storehouses of data, the companies and the government have built data-mining software and artificial intelligence software that sifts through the data looking for anomalies and flagging items of interest. There are no laws about how these programs are written, what they look for, or how they tag or label you when they've analyzed your data, so you're basically guilty until proven innocent in the eyes of this software. This was what scared me most -- I used to never worry about data collection, because I figured no one would ever have time to sift through the data. It would take a team of five people to keep track of what I do all day. But this software eliminates that need -- you have a team of robots following you around. Unfortunately, due to the insufficiencies in their programming, they're somewhat retarded robots.
The data gathered about you could be riddled with errors -- typographic errors, mistaken identities, other people's inaccurate subjective judgments (I might be labeled a "liberal extremist" for example) and because you have no access to it, or idea what information is being collected, you have no recourse about correcting problems that might later affect you. O'Harrow lists example after example of people who have pursued and tried to correct mistakes about their identities that led to credit problems, flags on no-fly lists, insurance losses, criminal investigations, etc., only to have the bad data pop back up after being corrected again and again, because the information is passed back and forth from so many data collection agencies.
In addition, these data collection centers are extremely porous and insecure -- anyone and everyone could have access to them. O'Harrow also recounts list after list of abuse of personal data, by the employees of companies that collect it, by the data brokers selling it, by government officials at all levels. People are accessing the data for personal use -- to stalk attractive women, to hunt down ex-partners for revenge, to using in political campaigns, to sell the information on the black market, to commit burglaries and assaults and securities frauds. They're also using data in ways far beyond what was intended when it was gathered.
The laws regarding data gathering, storage, data-mining and security are decades behind current technology, so there's no accountability or recourse. There's very little regulation of who has access to your personal data, what they use it for, and how you can control it. I kept hoping throughout the book for some light at the end of the tunnel -- for O'Harrow to provide some examples of organizations who are pursuing laws to regulate all these databases of information, but there was precious little.
July 5, 2012
I first heard about this author on The Dianne Rehm show (http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/201...). I was reticent to read his book since technology evolves briskly and the book is over 7 years old; however, it was well worth the time invested. Many of the companies discussed have been bought out by larger players and it is interesting to visit this subject with the benefit of hindsight. Although the few references to the PalmPilot made me giggle a little, the bulk of the information made me cringe. O'Harrow names names. He details projects and tries to give multiple perspectives. Big Brother (and all of his Little Brothers clambering to get to the top) are definitely gathering every scrap of information that we carelessly give away. Biometrics including skin prints were discussed- a predecessor to this week's article on a system to read fingerprints from 20' away (http://blog.al.com/breaking/2012/06/i...). Fascinating- looking forward to reading more by this author.
July 21, 2015
- O'Harrow (a Washington Post Reporter and a Pulitzer Prize finalist) lays out, in unnerving detail, the rapidly expanding social entity that is the 'security industrial complex'
- "When you use your cell phone, the phone company knows who you are, where you are, and who you are calling. If you use a discount card, your grocery and prescription purchases are recorded, profiled, and analyzed. Many new cars have built-in devices that enable companies to track from afar - details about your movements.
- The 'On Star' Computer System (originally available in high-end cars only, but now gaining in popularity) can not only remotely open your doors if you lock your keys inside, or track your car if it has been stolen - it can also listen in to in-car conversations without the knowledge of the participants!
- "When you use your cell phone, the phone company knows who you are, where you are, and who you are calling. If you use a discount card, your grocery and prescription purchases are recorded, profiled, and analyzed. Many new cars have built-in devices that enable companies to track from afar - details about your movements.
- The 'On Star' Computer System (originally available in high-end cars only, but now gaining in popularity) can not only remotely open your doors if you lock your keys inside, or track your car if it has been stolen - it can also listen in to in-car conversations without the knowledge of the participants!
March 13, 2015
I made the mistake of trying to approach this is an audiobook. It's got important information in it, everyone should know the material, but after the opening section, which reads like a page turner, an espionage thriller, it degenerates into commentary backed by the reading of memo after memo chock-full of acronyms and redaction. It becomes unlistenable about a quarter of the way through the book. I suspect that watching the movie "citizen four" would be a better use of a person's time. I do not however mean to minimize the importance of what Mr. Greenwald and friends have done here. For what it's worth, Edward Snowden is a national treasure in my eyes.
June 13, 2007
This is a scary look at privacy in this country. O'Harrow focusses on the private companies that buy, sell, and analyze our personal data- usually without your knowledge. From this data, they decide whether you are a terrorist, whether your purchase was fraudulent, or whether you are too risky for insurance.
This information industry would not be nearly as worrisome if it were properly regulated. However, in a clear conflict of interest, the government does not regulate these industries. Instead, they are one of their biggest customers of the information industry.
This information industry would not be nearly as worrisome if it were properly regulated. However, in a clear conflict of interest, the government does not regulate these industries. Instead, they are one of their biggest customers of the information industry.
November 14, 2012
A good story, but not as prescriptive as I hoped and somewhat dated. I was intrigued to learn that law enforcement is circumventing rules around data collection by sourcing data from third parties, but in a world where the NSA has access to AT&T's Internet backbone (Room 641A) and the FBI argues before the Supreme Court that they can place GPS devices on personal property without a warrant then there's nothing in this book to shock or surprise--only things to dismay.
June 4, 2015
This was a very well researched (and somewhat scary) study of the many ways people lose privacy in the modern era. It's not a reassuring book, but it's relevant despite being a few years old. Many might think it's no longer relevant, but I'd say it's still worth reading.
Great if you're interested in the ramifications of the digital age, less so if you don't want to think about how vulnerable most of us are these days.
Great if you're interested in the ramifications of the digital age, less so if you don't want to think about how vulnerable most of us are these days.
April 12, 2010
This book is a must-read for those interested in data privacy, and the idea that such a thing exists. I read this while taking a media law and ethics class, and it really opened my eyes to what companies are doing behind the scenes.
I wouldn't say this is a "fun" read, but it's certainly informative and a little bit scary.
I wouldn't say this is a "fun" read, but it's certainly informative and a little bit scary.
March 20, 2011
o.k. so i know some people are really nervous about who's watching and what info. are the looking to take from me.... i think you should be somewhat aware of what's going but this was a little too much info. for what I was looking for.
it would i guess make a good reference book for a writer who wants to know different ways to locate a person, learn about them etc.
it would i guess make a good reference book for a writer who wants to know different ways to locate a person, learn about them etc.
September 6, 2008
I didn't read every word, I'll admit, but it was a very interesting and well-researched book. It is about the lack of privacy in our society, and has some intriguing stories of identity thefts, corrupt use of personal information, and the technology and businesses that support data mining.
December 9, 2008
Disturbing but fascinating at the same time. This book discusses the vast amount of information about all of us that government along with private entities have in huge databases. Not a book for a paranoid individual.
April 8, 2010
A fascinating but terrifying book about surveillance technology in our society. It gives you a behind-the-scenes look at personal data collection centers, explores the lives of people who suffer from identity theft, and shows how 9/11 played a huge role in the explosion of high-tech surveillance.
January 1, 2012
A polemic about the power of government and private sector data-gathering capabilities.I wish it had more useful information about ho to make our personal information private in this age of total intrusions
Read
September 17, 2007Big brother is watching. Find out who knows what about whom and how in this shocking, enlightening book that reads more like a thriller than an expose.
March 24, 2008
The gig is up. The FBI knows I always request an aisle seat when I fly, that I order vegetarian pizza and wear Birkenstocks.
Want to read
July 14, 2008referred tt by Jeffrey Deaver in Broken Window about identity theft and shades of Big Brother as a good book about topic
August 19, 2010
YIkes. Everyone should read this so they can learn how to protect themselves and what NOT to do!
September 7, 2010
Skimmed over this book which I think would be a good thing for most of us to do. . .just to be familiar with how little our privacy is protected.
October 19, 2012
Scary stuff!
July 6, 2014
Not only great compilation of the Snowden leaks, but also a good reflection on the importance of privacy and the role of the media in helping regulate government. Everyone should read it!
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews