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Obfuscation: A User's Guide for Privacy and Protest Hardcover – September 4, 2015

by Finn Brunton (Author), Helen Nissenbaum (Author)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 79 ratings
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How we can evade, protest, and sabotage today's pervasive digital surveillance by deploying more data, not less—and why we should.

With Obfuscation, Finn Brunton and Helen Nissenbaum mean to start a revolution. They are calling us not to the barricades but to our computers, offering us ways to fight today's pervasive digital surveillance—the collection of our data by governments, corporations, advertisers, and hackers. To the toolkit of privacy protecting techniques and projects, they propose adding obfuscation: the deliberate use of ambiguous, confusing, or misleading information to interfere with surveillance and data collection projects. Brunton and Nissenbaum provide tools and a rationale for evasion, noncompliance, refusal, even sabotage—especially for average users, those of us not in a position to opt out or exert control over data about ourselves. Obfuscation will teach users to push back, software developers to keep their user data safe, and policy makers to gather data without misusing it.

Brunton and Nissenbaum present a guide to the forms and formats that obfuscation has taken and explain how to craft its implementation to suit the goal and the adversary. They describe a series of historical and contemporary examples, including radar chaff deployed by World War II pilots, Twitter bots that hobbled the social media strategy of popular protest movements, and software that can camouflage users' search queries and stymie online advertising. They go on to consider obfuscation in more general terms, discussing why obfuscation is necessary, whether it is justified, how it works, and how it can be integrated with other privacy practices and technologies.

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  1. Print length
    136 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    The MIT Press
  4. Publication date
    September 4, 2015
  5. Dimensions
    5.31 x 0.65 x 8.31 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0262029731
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0262029735
  8. See all details
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4.2 out of 5 stars
79 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book easy to read and engaging. They appreciate the thought-provoking points raised by the author. However, opinions differ on the writing style - some find it clear and detailed, while others find it wordy and hard to read.

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6 customers mention "Readability"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the book easy to read and understand. They appreciate the author's writing style.

"Author does a great job writing this book in a way that anyone can understand the concepts that are being presented." Read more

"Raised some interesting & thought provoking points. Very good read." Read more

"Ok read, just the start I wanted." Read more

"...Well done!" Read more

6 customers mention "Thought provoking"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the book interesting and informative. They appreciate the worthwhile topic and the collection of important points. The writing style is a little wordy, but they find the endnotes with useful links helpful.

"Nice collection of important points collected between the covers. Bravo!!!" Read more

"...This is probably the most useful part of the book in that it provides a catalogue of obfuscatory activities that helps in analysing their nature...." Read more

"This book is an interesting read covering an approach to protecting personal privacy that isn't often discussed...." Read more

"Fun and informative." Read more

8 customers mention "Language"5 positive3 negative

Customers have different views on the language used in the book. Some find it clear and accessible, with detailed explanations and examples that help anyone understand the concepts presented. The arguments are straightforward and convincing. However, others feel the writing style is a little wordy and challenging to read at times.

"...I found the argument for obfuscation convincing, but then I have long been in the habit of entering bogus phone numbers in those books that must be..." Read more

"...It felt as if it was written like a college paper and not as an information guide book...." Read more

"...The arguments the book presents are straightforward, and while often boiling down to "It depends", the authors do make a good effort to..." Read more

"I found this to be an excellent dive into the world of privacy. I paused for reflection numerous times in this book to evaluate the world around me." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • hubert art
    5.0 out of 5 stars Good read
    Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2020
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    Nice collection of important points collected between the covers. Bravo!!!
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  • JP Backhouse
    4.0 out of 5 stars A clear guide to being intentionally unclear
    Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    Perhaps the coolest thing about Obfuscation by Finn Brunton and Helen Nissenbaum is the title. Obfuscation is such a lovely word, illustrating as it does, the very act of obfuscating by using an unfamiliar word. To obfuscate is to obscure “intended meaning in communication, making the message confusing, willfully ambiguous, or harder to understand” (Wikipedia) or “to make something less clear and harder to understand, especially intentionally” (Cambridge free online dictionary).

    This book is about ways of obfuscating and why to obfuscate, particularly in the context of digital collection of personal data and the lack of privacy that ensues.

    The first third of the book (Part One) is devoted to examples of obfuscation both in digital contexts and in other contexts. This is probably the most useful part of the book in that it provides a catalogue of obfuscatory activities that helps in analysing their nature. Having a set of examples makes it possible to see patterns in the types of activities, their goals and the resources that need to be brought to bear.

    The next third of the book (Part Two) provides an argument for obfuscation as a legitimate and morally defensible activity, particularly in the context of a world where we are often “unable to refuse or deny observation”. If people cannot escape being watched in the digital world, usually by those in positions of power, then individual actions as well as the creation of tools to obfuscate is a reasonable response. I found the argument for obfuscation convincing, but then I have long been in the habit of entering bogus phone numbers in those books that must be signed to gain access to buildings. The discussion of ethics, although the densest part of the book, is also useful in that it sets out the arguments clearly enough to be followed with a bit of effort.

    The authors are both based at New York University. Finn Brunton, on his web page, describes his work thus: “I work on the history and theory of digital media technology, with a focus on adoption: how computing and networking machinery gets adapted, abused, modified, hacked, and transformed. I want to understand how we can use digital technologies to build a more equitable, just, decentralized, experimental and interesting society.” I like the way he describes the kind of society that he wants to build. I could buy into that. Helen Nissenbaum has an illustrious profile and her own Wikipedia entry, with research focused on security and privacy in the online world. What I learned from trawling her profile is that her undergraduate degrees are from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, where I work.

    What I particularly like (being an academic) is that almost one third of the book (the last third) is taken up with endnotes – lots of lovely links to explore the details of each example, and the arguments presented. I will have fun exploring some of those. I plan to use the book with my Master’s class in 2016 since a discussion of privacy issues forms part of the Trends in Information Systems course which I teach. I think it will be a good starting point from which to explore.

    My one disappointment with the book is that I was hoping for more direct advice to me as an individual as to which obfuscating activities I can, or ought to, take part in. The book is actually aimed more at someone designing software or some other “program” of resistance. The opening line promises to “start a revolution”. I was left eager to join the barricades, but not quite sure where to find them. Perhaps an individual’s guide will follow?
    19 people found this helpful
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  • Mark
    5.0 out of 5 stars I, or someone I let use my account to write a review, quite enjoyed this book.
    Reviewed in the United States on September 22, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    I bought this book really wanting to love it, and luckily I did.

    Overall it is a light and breezy read, less than 100 pages in length. The arguments the book presents are straightforward, and while often boiling down to "It depends", the authors do make a good effort to explain what it depends upon. The language used in the book is clear and accessible, not requiring frequent trips to the dictionary. The sadness at quickly arriving at the book's end is offset by the wealth of endnotes and a bibliography that should keep me engaged in the topic for some time.

    As a call to arms, it might be faulted being a bit meek. But then again, it is about attempting to address an imbalance of power and a lack of polemic maybe it's strength.
    27 people found this helpful
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  • Kindle Customer
    3.0 out of 5 stars This is an interesting book if you were a sixties wacko or are a child of a sixties radical, a red diaper doper baby or academic
    Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2017
    This is a really interesting book, especially if you were a sixties wacko (like me, in the SDS), a child of a sixties radical, a red diaper doper baby (look it up on google, it's there), or an academic. However, (1) are you really angry enough to life a life of obfuscation? (2) do you have enough spare time to do this stuff?, and (3) are things really this horrible? I imagine obfuscation as a life style is a fun thing to talk about in the faculty lounge but it's really hard to live and really hard to explain to your friends and family. (My moment of truth was night in the Eighties when I was listening to some radical music and my ten-year-old asked me, "Dad, what does she mean about blowing up buildings for peace?" I spent half an hour trying to explain how blowing up buildings would bring about peace then she shook her head - the "grownups are crazy" shake kids all seem learn - and walked away. After a couple of weeks thinking about this, i finally realized that I really was crazy. Moment of truth.) BTW: Obfuscation was pushed as a "key" element of Java. After a few years, we realized that obfuscation in Java really did make code hard to steal but it really, really made it hard to do maintenance on the code. I hope Brunton comes the same realization about obfuscation in life. Life is too wonderful to cripple it with intentional craziness.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Heath
    5.0 out of 5 stars Required Reading
    Reviewed in the United States on January 8, 2018
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    I found this to be an excellent dive into the world of privacy. I paused for reflection numerous times in this book to evaluate the world around me.
    Helpful
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  • k
    2.0 out of 5 stars Not a users guide as it says.
    Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    I was recommended this book and was hopeful but was left disappointed. It felt as if it was written like a college paper and not as an information guide book. It explains what Obfuscation is but no guide on how to implement it. It offers a few examples it was used in history and war but nothing people can use in there day to day lives.
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  • Nathaniel Kaufmann
    4.0 out of 5 stars Extremely worthwhile topic, but writing style a little wordy
    Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    This book is an interesting read covering an approach to protecting personal privacy that isn't often discussed. Obfuscation is the act of polluting the data collected such that the collector cannot know which data is correct, and which is bogus. For personal privacy its a way to stop organizations that you interact with from knowing about you e.g. what you are searching about, which web sites you interact with and so on.

    I found the topic very interesting and worth exploring. However, I did find the writing style a little too wordy and it was laborious to work through the book. Hence my rating of 4 stars.
    6 people found this helpful
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  • Kei
    5.0 out of 5 stars Yes.
    Reviewed in the United States on November 29, 2016
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    Fun and informative.
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting case studies.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 23, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    Short book. Timely topic, interesting case studies. Good food for thought.
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  • Nick Mantalas
    5.0 out of 5 stars Important info
    Reviewed in Canada on January 21, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    Very interesting read
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  • Herve Kabla
    3.0 out of 5 stars Intéressant sur un vingtaine de pages
    Reviewed in France on July 14, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    Un livre sur les techniques d'obfuscation, cela parait intéressant. Sauf qui si la première partie, consacrée aux différentes techniques, est passionnante, la suite est nettement plus alambiquée. Bref, intéressant au début, mais décevant sur la fin.
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  • Excul
    4.0 out of 5 stars Kurzes gut verständliches Buch.
    Reviewed in Germany on April 25, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    besonders geeignet für Personen, die sich bis jetzt noch nicht sehr viel mit der Thematik von Privacy Protection befasst haben.

    Als Fachbuch selbst ist es unzureichend. Es ist stark verkürzend und gibt keinen Ausführlichen Überblick.

    Das Buch ist hübsch verarbeitet.
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Yes, I like it!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 24, 2019
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    Yes, I like it!
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