Data and Goliath: The Hidden Battles to Collect Your Data and Control Your World First Edition

by Bruce Schneier (Author)

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ISBN-10: 0393244814

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You are under surveillance right now.

Your cell phone provider tracks your location and knows who’s with you. Your online and in-store purchasing patterns are recorded, and reveal if you're unemployed, sick, or pregnant. Your e-mails and texts expose your intimate and casual friends. Google knows what you’re thinking because it saves your private searches. Facebook can determine your sexual orientation without you ever mentioning it.

The powers that surveil us do more than simply store this information. Corporations use surveillance to manipulate not only the news articles and advertisements we each see, but also the prices we’re offered. Governments use surveillance to discriminate, censor, chill free speech, and put people in danger worldwide. And both sides share this information with each other or, even worse, lose it to cybercriminals in huge data breaches.

Much of this is voluntary: we cooperate with corporate surveillance because it promises us convenience, and we submit to government surveillance because it promises us protection. The result is a mass surveillance society of our own making. But have we given up more than we’ve gained? In Data and Goliath, security expert Bruce Schneier offers another path, one that values both security and privacy. He shows us exactly what we can do to reform our government surveillance programs and shake up surveillance-based business models, while also providing tips for you to protect your privacy every day. You'll never look at your phone, your computer, your credit cards, or even your car in the same way again.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"When it comes to what government and business are doing together and separately with personal data scooped up from the ether, Mr. Schneier is as knowledgeable as it gets…. Mr. Schneier’s use of concrete examples of bad behavior with data will make even skeptics queasy and potentially push the already paranoid over the edge. Mr. Schneier writes clearly and simply about a complex subject."
― Jonathan A. Knee, The New York Times

"Lucid and compelling."
― Emily Parker, Washington Post

"A pithy, pointed, and highly readable explanation of what we know in the wake of the Snowden revelations, with practical steps that ordinary people can take if they want to do something about the threats to privacy and liberty posed not only by the government but by the Big Data industry."
― Neal Stephenson, author of Reamde

"Lucid and fast-paced…. Schneier describes with dismay the erosion of privacy, then lays out a strategy for turning the tide."
― Hiawatha Bray, Boston Globe

"[T]hought-provoking, absorbing, and comprehensive."
― Gil Press, Forbes

"The public conversation about surveillance in the digital age would be a good deal more intelligent if we all read Bruce Schneier first."
― Malcolm Gladwell

"Bruce Schneier has written a hugely insightful and important book about how big data and its cousin, mass surveillance, affect our lives, and what to do about it. In characteristic fashion, Schneier takes very complex and varied information and ideas and makes them vivid, accessible, and compelling."
― Jack Goldsmith, former head of the Office of Legal Counsel of the Department of Justice under George W. Bush

"Schneier exposes the many and surprising ways governments and corporations monitor all of us, providing a must-read User’s Guide to Life in the Data Age. His recommendations for change should be part of a much-needed public debate."
― Richard A. Clarke, former chief counterterrorism adviser on the National Security Council under Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, and author of Cyber War

"As it becomes increasingly clear that surveillance has surpassed anything that Orwell imagined, we need a guide to how and why we’re being snooped and what we can do about it. Bruce Schneier is that guide―step by step he outlines the various ways we are being monitored, and after scaring the pants off us, he tells us how to fight back."
― Steven Levy, editor-in-chief of Backchannel and author of Crypto and Hackers

"A judicious and incisive analysis of one of the most pressing new issues of our time, written by a true expert."
― Steven Pinker, Johnstone Professor of Psychology, Harvard University, and author of The Better Angels of Our Nature

"Lucid, sophisticated… Finely constructed, free of cant, and practical in its conclusions."
― Jacob Silverman, Los Angeles Times

"Paints a picture of the big-data revolution that is dark, but compelling; one in which the conveniences of our digitized world have devalued privacy."
― Charles Seife, Nature

"The internet is a surveillance state, and like any technology, surveillance has both good and bad uses. Bruce Schneier draws on his vast range of technical and historical skills to sort them out. He analyzes both the challenge of big brother and many little brothers. Anyone interested in security, liberty, privacy, and justice in this cyber age must read this book."
― Joseph S. Nye Jr., Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor and author of The Future of Power

"Data and Goliath is the indispensable guide to understanding the most important current threat to freedom in democratic market societies. Whether you worry about government surveillance in the post-Snowden era, or about Facebook and Google manipulating you based on their vast data collections, Schneier, the leading, truly independent expert writing about these threats today, offers a rich overview of the technologies and practices leading us toward surveillance society and the diverse solutions we must pursue to save us from that fate."
― Yochai Benkler, Berkman Professor of Entrepreneurial Legal Studies at Harvard Law School and author of The Wealth of Networks

About the Author

Bruce Schneier is "one of the world's foremost security experts" (Wired) and the best-selling author of thirteen books. He speaks and writes regularly for major media venues, and his newsletter and blog reach more than 250,000 people worldwide. He is a Fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School and the CTO of Resilient Systems, Inc.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ W. W. Norton & Company; First Edition (March 2, 2015)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 400 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0393244814
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0393244816
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.29 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.5 x 1.4 x 9.6 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #859,552 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #114 in Computer & Internet Law
- #119 in Science & Technology Law (Books)
- #140 in Politics of Privacy & Surveillance

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360 ratings

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Bruce Schneier

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Bruce Schneier is an internationally renowned security technologist, called a "security guru" by The Economist. He is the author of 12 books -- including "Data and Goliath: The Hidden Battles to Collect Your Data and Control Your World" -- as well as hundreds of articles, essays, and academic papers. His influential newsletter "Crypto-Gram" and blog "Schneier on Security" are read by over 250,000 people. Schneier is a fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School, a program fellow at the New America Foundation's Open Technology Institute, a board member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and an Advisory Board member of the Electronic Privacy Information Center. He is also the Chief Technology Officer of Resilient Systems, Inc.

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Jan Dziekan

Sobering view on how privacy was silently lost

Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2016

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It is a meticulously researched, broad overview of how changes in technology and politics influence our privacy, security and freedom. As the author admits, elaboration of this text was inspired by Edward Snowden disclosing classified NSA materials, showing the extent to which people all over the world are invigilated by numerous government agencies. Bruce, a renowned digital security expert, was initially involved in helping journalists from The Guardian understand what was contained in more technical documents.

The book is divided into three parts. The first one describes our world, where every appliance is a computer, everyone is connected, there’s an app for everything - all resulting in enormous amounts of data, pumped each second through the internet. New business models emerged, monetizing user data (e.g. via targeted ads) in exchange for free services. We have traded privacy for convenience. All that information being gathered - unprecedented in history - prompted some governments to deploy mass surveillance programs, theoretically in order to detect terrorist activity. Although Snowden’s whistleblowing relates mainly to NSA and UK’s GCHQ, there are strong clues suggesting that other world powers do the same.

In second part, the author writes about negative effects of mass surveillance - notably the stifling of free speech - and what risks come from the abuse of power from secret agencies. Moreover, it is shown how data mining techniques are ineffective at finding terrorists, on the other hand being helpful in intimidating and controlling whole societies. Author focuses on privacy as an inherent human right, nowadays threatened by the fact that human interactions are losing their historically ephemeral nature; internet forgets nothing.

As Bruce Schneier is deeply convinced that all those changes are mostly harmful - to personal freedoms, transparency of government and police work, democratic procedures, justice etc. - the book, in its last part, concludes with author’s proposals on how to avoid more damage. Privacy and security can coexist; mass surveillance should be replaced with targeted one, allowed by warrant, along police procedures - not espionage (secret) ones. Companies should not yield to NSA claims to insert backdoors - so no bad guys can exploit them. Whichever company collects user data, should do so with transparent rules on how it is used. It is not yet too late to save privacy from waning - if only societies could see through free services and govt-instilled fear of terror, what is really at stake.

Some derogate this title for being biased against US federal agents, sworn to protect the country from terrorist threats and doing whatever it takes to get the job done. I would like to point out that the author does not negate the patriotic intentions of federal personnel; his criticism pertains to how whole agencies are organised (amassed power with little oversight) and how their recently-acquired mass-surveillance tools are not cut out for the job of finding terrorists. Those points are backed by numerous cited facts. On the other hand, it is not hidden that this whole book is an expression of Bruce Schneier’s beliefs; if he writes that privacy “is something we ought to have (...) because it is moral” - he does not have to elaborate too much on why he thinks that, does he? So, yes, the book might be called “biased” - as it supports the notion that some sacrifices, in the name of security, just can not be made. Personal freedoms are the foundation of western societies and must not be given away. I fully agree with Bruce - and suspect that a majority of US and EU inhabitants would too, have they pondered on what actually happened in the surveillance field in last two decades. This book really helps you in realising that.

All in all, I seriously doubt that anyone could write such a convincing and well substantiated book which would oppose “Data and Goliath” message - but, perversely, I would love to see one ;) A must read. For literally each of us.

35 people found this helpful

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Omar Ghaffar

Just finished this work. I agree with the authors ...

Reviewed in the United States on February 6, 2016

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Just finished this work. I agree with the author's core thesis, which stands in direct contrast to the Nissenbaum view in her seminal work. This author's work provides a valuable 3000 foot view of how our data as Americans is accessed by various parties on the internet. There is a political bent to the work and the author editorializes heavily - he may not be the most gifted writer known to man, but the value of this work is 5 stars (even though it already confirms much of what I already knew). Warms my heart to know that the author is now a fellow at Harvard, which affords him protection from harassment in providing this type of public service. I'm also in favor of a more secure nation and think our approach should be refocused away from mass collection. Various legal definitions in privacy law need an update. A Snowden type incident was ultimately inevitable - the question is now how do we move forward from here and protect while progressing as a society. The author offer solutions. The angry New York Times review of this work attacks the author for upsetting the status quo. Buy this book.

21 people found this helpful

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Alienprophecy

Stunning

Reviewed in the United States on May 20, 2019

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If you assumed that everything you do is recorded, your only fault might be a lack of imagination.

This book is an eye-opener, to say the least. If only this were a textbook for required college courses! So much of our time is spent squabbling over things that have relatively little effect in our lives...activists haranguing us over small legal matters that affect 1-3% of the population, when -all- of us are affected by the issues presented in this book.

By the time you've gotten through the first hundred pages, you will come to know that the death of privacy has been the greatest human rights violation of our generation, and it has done so in near complete silence.

2 people found this helpful

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Charles Mccain

The Gestapo Could Only Dream of This

Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2015

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if you want to know how little privacy you have and how quickly the US Government, the NSA, the FBI and large corporations, particularly the hi-tech companies, have joined together to surveil you 24/7, then read this. You will be knocked over. It made my ill when I discovered we have no privacy at all. Nada. Zip. What is creepier is the hi-tech barons saying things along the lines of, "if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to be afraid of." This is almost word for word what the Nazis said. Deeply disturbing and few of us know much of what this guy writes about. This isn't an expose using "leaked documents". This is a clear, concise book sourced from public documents, meticulously footnoted and well written.

13 people found this helpful

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SouthDenverDave

Superb book, highly recommended

Reviewed in the United States on August 7, 2016

Verified Purchase

Since the Snowden revelations, a brave new world has been brought to our consciousness. Bruce Schneier brings this home with easy to understand descriptions. The internet was initially one of the greatest inventions of humankind. Unfortunately, it has been perverted into a big system for spying and merciless commercial exploitation, not to mention criminal activity and rampant theft by sociopaths and stalkers. The governments (almost all of them according to Schneier) are directly responsible. The government is literally "in bed" with big business as they cover each others back for their own avaricious amoral schemes. I highly recommend you read this book.

3 people found this helpful

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Michael Valles

Surprising, Highly Informative and Scary.

Reviewed in the United States on June 2, 2015

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Very well written and informative. I had no idea the extent to which we are all being tracked and our lives revealed every day. As Schneier points out we agree to a some of this through our use of technology that benefits us. Or that we at least consider useful in today's hyper-connected, techno-driven environment. The disturbing aspects involve the ways in which data about us is used without our consent or control and not to our benefit.
But the author does more than just alert the reader to the dangers to our privacy and freedom but makes practical suggestions about positive actions we can take to address the issues he raises. In particular, we need to own our data, especially our own medical data. I highly recommend this book to anyone concerned about their privacy and freedom and that of their families.

12 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Fiona C

A top notch read and study

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 8, 2021

Verified Purchase

What can you say? A book by the master of cryptography and a dire warning on the direction we're taking unless we start listening and taking the ease of technology a little more seriously. The news is everywhere - but it's up to listen

This book lays it out in details for both the expert and the amateur. A thoroughly interesting sometimes chilling read and very hard to put down

Htegg

Dated information

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 30, 2018

Verified Purchase

If you’ve read something called “the internet” at any point after 2013, then the content of this book will not come as a surprise. It’s basically lots of “Did you know the government does this?” And “did you know your phone knows everything about you?”. It should not come as a surprise to most people, but if you’ve never used the internet or a smartphone then this book will be a big eye opener!

What you knew possible but didn't think would happen

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 18, 2017

Verified Purchase

Informative and engaging book that addresses the security and privacy challenges of today. For the lay persons it helps raise awareness so people can make informed choices in their use of modern. For those of us in the field of technology, we used to take it for granted that many things known to be technically possible but wouldn't be done out of some underlying general sense of good in corporations and governments.
According to Schneier, that is all wishful thinking. A lot of what Bruce Schneier says also has parallels with Richard Stallman - just that in his book, Schneier comes across as more "mainstream" friendly and less paranoid - no offence to either of the stalwarts, this is just a comment on how their respective ideas are perceived

One person found this helpful

Xelb

Good overview

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 7, 2017

Verified Purchase

I have been following this author's publications and posts for nearly 20 years and I still believe he is one of the most reputable sources in the field.
Please be aware that this book is not technical and it primarily focuses on the social and legal changes (is the US legislation) that would rectify the current (perceived) lack of privacy.
Half of the book is made by notes and references, which is really nice if you want to do some more research.

bart

Eye opener

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 15, 2015

Verified Purchase

A must read for the digital savvy and those aspiring to know more about the corrosive effects of unfettered surveillance to individuals' lives and society as a whole. Ranging from the holistic political implications to the practical defenses, Bruce Schneier makes us more aware of the depth of intrusion purveyed by all manner of actors on the Internet.

5 people found this helpful

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