An Introduction to Mass Surveillance and International Law

Seminar paper from the year 2015 in the subject Law - European and International Law, Intellectual Properties, grade: 1,3, University of Mannheim, language: English, abstract: This paper focuses on mass surveillance and its legality under the national laws of a few countries and international law as a whole. Many among us frequently hear the term ‘mass surveillance’ these days, and connect it with government monitoring us through the internet and other media - keeping a note on who we are, what we do, any signs within us that could be contrary to the national security and so on. After all, if you are a good, law-abiding citizen, then what do you have to fear about? However, what about the privacy of an individual? As a law-abiding citizen living in a liberal democracy, shouldn’t one have the right to indulge freely in legal activities without any fear or backlash from the authority? Or, is it that as long as you do what you’re told, there is nothing to fear? This paper shall analyze these questions, and some more, where we look into these issues especially from an international and legal perspective. By reading this paper, the reader has an opportunity to understand surveillance and its background, and get a thorough understanding of arguments put forward by both the supporters of the surveillance laws (i.e. the government) and those who are against it. This paper looks at how mass surveillance is defined under laws of various countries, since there is no specific international law that deals with it. At the end, the paper presents plausible international laws and regulations that can be viewed to assess mass surveillance according to the current laws in place.