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Surveillance Valley: The Secret Military History of the Internet Hardcover – February 6, 2018

by Yasha Levine (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 334 ratings
Editors' pick Best History
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The internet is the most effective weapon the government has ever built.

In this fascinating book, investigative reporter Yasha Levine uncovers the secret origins of the internet, tracing it back to a Pentagon counterinsurgency surveillance project.

A visionary intelligence officer, William Godel, realized that the key to winning the war in Vietnam was not outgunning the enemy, but using new information technology to understand their motives and anticipate their movements. This idea -- using computers to spy on people and groups perceived as a threat, both at home and abroad -- drove ARPA to develop the internet in the 1960s, and continues to be at the heart of the modern internet we all know and use today. As Levine shows, surveillance wasn't something that suddenly appeared on the internet; it was woven into the fabric of the technology.

But this isn't just a story about the NSA or other domestic programs run by the government. As the book spins forward in time, Levine examines the private surveillance business that powers tech-industry giants like Google, Facebook, and Amazon, revealing how these companies spy on their users for profit, all while doing double duty as military and intelligence contractors. Levine shows that the military and Silicon Valley are effectively inseparable: a military-digital complex that permeates everything connected to the internet, even coopting and weaponizing the antigovernment privacy movement that sprang up in the wake of Edward Snowden.

With deep research, skilled storytelling, and provocative arguments, Surveillance Valley will change the way you think about the news -- and the device on which you read it.
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  1. Print length
    384 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    PublicAffairs
  4. Publication date
    February 6, 2018
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 1.5 x 9.3 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1610398025
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1610398022
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A real public service."―San Francisco Reviewof Books

"This polemical history argues that the U.S. military's role in the development of the Internet indelibly shaped the system into a powerful tool of government surveillance. ... amid increasing dismay about technology's influence on contemporary life, such forceful questioning is salutary."―New Yorker

"Provocative history of the internet-equipped security state, implicating key players in the digital economy in the game of espionage.... Levine, a tech-savvy investigative journalist, documents an army of them in his wide-ranging look at the way governments and companies alike spy on ordinary citizens."―Kirkus

"This engrossing investigation will find a large audience among those interested in the uses and abuses of technology."―Library Journal

"Yasha Levine's bold and sweeping history of the Internet-from its shadowy inception as a military contrivance for counterinsurgency and domestic surveillance, to its current incarnation as a commercialized tool for everyday communication that turns everyone's life into an open book-tells a gripping story of our algorithmic way of life in the making. Defying common Internet tropes that present a battle between valiant and independent rebels versus omnipresent state and corporate powers, no one comes out of this book looking clean. Whatever your thoughts about our digitized world, this book will challenge them."―Stuart Ewen, Distinguished Professor of History, Sociology and MediaStudies at Hunter College and the CUNY Graduate Center

"The Internet will never be the same after you read Surveillance Valley. Yasha Levine has done a masterful job of research and reporting about the military origins of the 'world wide web' and how its essential nature has not changed in the years since its creation during the Cold War. I especially applaud his courage in unraveling the connections between the so-called 'deep state' and its economic allies in Silicon Valley with the big guns of the 'privacy' movement, who have scoffed at virtually every attempt at making their operations transparent to the public."―Tim Shorrock, author of Spies for Hire: The Secret World of IntelligenceOutsourcing

"In this fast-paced, myth busting expose, Yasha Levine documents how a collection of spooks, cybernetic fanatics, and libertarian oligarchs have exploited the internet to promote regime change abroad and establish a totalistic spying network at home. Surveillance Valley is an unprecedented journalistic achievement, revealing the untold history of the anti-democratic regime that rules our lives from behind a glossy LED screen."―Max Blumenthal, author of Goliath: Life and Loathingin Greater Israel, senioreditor of AlterNet's Grayzone Project

"An important history lesson."―TANK

"Surveillance Valley is a troubling book, but it is an important book. It smashes comforting myths."―Boundary 2

"Google employees rightfully balked recently when they found out their employer had a number of defense contracts; one wonders if they knew that the tech industry was quite literally founded on the back of the defense industry, such that there was a time when they were synonymous. Yasha Levine's wonderful historical tract shatters any illusion that the two industries were ever really that at odds with each other."―Salon

About the Author

Yasha Levine is an investigative journalist for Pando Daily, a San Francisco-based news magazine focused on covering the politics and power of big tech. He has been published in Wired Magazine, the Nation, Slate, Penthouse, the New York Observer, Playboy, Not Safe For Work Corp, Alternet, and many others. He has also appeared on network television, including MSNBC, and has had his work profiled by the New York Observer, Vanity Fair, and the Verge, among others.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ PublicAffairs; Illustrated edition (February 6, 2018)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 384 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1610398025
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1610398022
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.5 x 9.3 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 334 ratings

About the author

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Yasha Levine

Yasha Levine

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Yasha Levine is a Russian-born investigative journalist and a founding editor of The eXiled. Until 2015, he was a reporter for Pando Daily, a San Francisco-based news magazine covering the politics and power of big tech. His work has been published and profiled in The Baffler, Wired Magazine, The Nation, Slate, Penthouse, The New York Observer, Playboy, Not Safe For Work Corp, Alternet, Vanity Fair, The Verge, MSNBC and many others.

See more at https://yashalevine.com and https://surveillancevalley.com/.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
334 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book well-researched and providing good information on the history of the internet. However, opinions differ regarding the writing style - some find it engaging and readable, while others feel it's boring or flat.

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ReadabilityHistoryWriting style
18 customers mention "Readability"18 positive0 negative

Customers find the book engaging and thought-provoking. They appreciate the well-researched and documented content, including a counter narrative. The author is described as unbiased and talented.

"...But if you read the book you will find a well researched counter narrative - a third version of story most people don't know - the thinking within..." Read more

"...If I could, I'd give Levine's book six stars. It's the most important book I've read in awhile." Read more

"...Very well documented and cited sources. Anyone involved with the Internet and cyber security and privacy should have this book in their reference kit." Read more

"A critical book to read to understand how the Internet was coopted from day 1 and continues so today." Read more

7 customers mention "History"7 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the history. They find it adequate and say the book provides great information on the history of the internet.

"...Adequate sort of history, about what I expected from a "Reporter"." Read more

"Good history with strong research and interesting topic, but I was a little disappointed with the ending...." Read more

"This is a fantastic and eye-opening history of the internet. Levine is a true professional with a sharp eye for detail...." Read more

"Book came and had no damage. Interesting view on the internet's origins." Read more

7 customers mention "Writing style"4 positive3 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the writing style. Some find it well-written and readable, while others think it's boring and flat.

"I found this to be a very well researched and readable account of the military origins of the internet alongside the PR campaign to try and get the..." Read more

"The writing fell very flat and made what would otherwise be interesting material feel like a chore to read" Read more

"...It's also very well written and a fun read. If you're interested in the subject you should read this book." Read more

"...book because what he is writing is pure fantasy and reads like Soviet era propaganda...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Rowan Wernham
    5.0 out of 5 stars Gripping read, well researched alternate history of the internet.
    Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    People are starting to see the internet as a failed utopia - but the story Yasha tells as he draws a history of the internet is that there was never a utopia.

    Those who want to dismiss the book will sneer that everyone knows the military history of the internet - in the same way that everyone knows that Tor is funded by the US military establishment, and that this is somehow irrelevant.

    But if you read the book you will find a well researched counter narrative - a third version of story most people don't know - the thinking within DARPA that was about counter insurgency, asymmetrical war, and surveillance.

    Previously untold stories, like the privatization of the internet (that warrant multiple volumes of discussion in their own right) form the better part of a chapter mid way through this book - a critical narrative when you consider that wealthy internet moguls are our modern day railroad barons, and their success is based largely on public investment.

    Anyone who has a developed understanding of imperialism, and the US as a modern imperialist power, will find the chapters on Tor and the crypto movement particularly entertaining - cyber libertarians who rail against the state, while cashing state department checks and thinking they are smart ones, meanwhile being used as a part of a soft power regime change strategy.
    58 people found this helpful
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  • Mark H. Gaffney
    5.0 out of 5 stars Extremely well written, exhaustively researched, brilliantly argued...
    Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    Levine's message is spot on: high technology is not going to save us from Big Brother, the nightmare of surveillance and control that Orwell warned us against. No, in the end, we will have to save ourselves. But first we must WAKE UP! Today, the huge telecoms, Google, Facebook, Amazon, even Apple, are a part of the problem. All of them are highly integrated with CIA and NSA and threaten our freedom. The problem is not somewhere else, not over there, not with Russia or China, it's right here. It has been all along, as Levine shows in his fine book. The Internet was always about counterinsurgency, surveillance and control.

    If I could, I'd give Levine's book six stars. It's the most important book I've read in awhile.
    26 people found this helpful
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  • D. Ruth
    4.0 out of 5 stars The fundamental "secret" wasn't really secret
    Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    The premise of the book is that the early history of military funding has been forgotten. Not really. However Mr. Levine layers several other objectives on top of the original objective: move packaged data (files). He does a good job of tying these additional objectives to a thread of surveillance and privacy issues. Very well documented and cited sources. Anyone involved with the Internet and cyber security and privacy should have this book in their reference kit.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • William Wise
    5.0 out of 5 stars IVE BEEN LIVING A LIE FOR HALF A CENTURY PLUS!!
    Reviewed in the United States on October 25, 2023
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    This work is the deposition of systematic crime we live all day every day thinking its right. You want to make a good flick, make this 80 year history come to the big screen somehow! Every advancement for 😈 evil all along! The whole mistake they made was letting the public even use it. The internet even "blew back" on these satanic monsters.
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  • Patrick Wood, Author
    5.0 out of 5 stars Must-read book
    Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    A critical book to read to understand how the Internet was coopted from day 1 and continues so today.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Dee
    5.0 out of 5 stars Required reading for all internet users
    Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    Yasha Levine traces the history of the development of the internet starting as a government counter-insurgency tool to a full-blown surveillance state with the complicity of big tech companies. Also the fake "privacy" tools like Tor pushed to give users a false sense of security while being spied on all the same.
    7 people found this helpful
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  • Tenma13
    5.0 out of 5 stars Well researched and very informative
    Reviewed in the United States on August 2, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    I found this to be a very well researched and readable account of the military origins of the internet alongside the PR campaign to try and get the general public to think otherwise; with exposure of the Tor projects deep military links the perfect example of these two threads.
    One person found this helpful
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  • michael hayden
    5.0 out of 5 stars Eye-opening
    Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2022
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    This book provides a cogent and a valuable study of what lurks behind the shiny new toys modern telecommunications have given us.
    4 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • JD
    5.0 out of 5 stars the author has writen a good book
    Reviewed in Canada on April 17, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    An explanation of how the internet came into being. The internet has become a daily part of our lives.
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  • RAFAEL J.
    5.0 out of 5 stars 1984
    Reviewed in Spain on November 28, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    El libro de Yasha Levine, El Valle de la Vigilancia, ofrece una visión cruda y documentada sobre la historia de Internet como una herramienta diseñada desde sus inicios para la vigilancia. Lejos de la narrativa utópica que muchos atribuyen al origen de la red, Levine desmonta la idea de que Internet fue concebido como un espacio libre, enfatizando su relación con la contrainsurgencia, el desarrollo militar y el control social.

    Desde los primeros pasos con ARPANET, Levine expone cómo figuras influyentes como J.C.R. Licklider o Norbert Wiener, ya en los años 50 y 60, impulsaron un modelo de informática al servicio de la vigilancia estatal. A través de los años, el libro muestra cómo este enfoque evolucionó hasta convertirse en la herramienta de vigilancia global que conocemos hoy, alimentada por gigantes tecnológicos como Google y por tecnologías avanzadas como la inteligencia artificial.

    Un aspecto destacado es la crítica al Proyecto Tor, que Levine describe como una falsa bandera de privacidad. El autor plantea cómo esta tecnología, supuestamente diseñada para proteger el anonimato, ha sido utilizada y financiada por instituciones como la CIA y la NSA, convirtiéndose en un arma de doble filo que facilita la vigilancia en lugar de proteger de ella. Incluso Edward Snowden, una figura icónica en la defensa de la privacidad, es presentado aquí como un publicista involuntario de estas herramientas, más que un verdadero agente de cambio.

    Levine desvela la paradoja de la privacidad en la era digital: cuanto más se intenta proteger mediante herramientas de cifrado, mayor es la sospecha generada por parte de los sistemas de vigilancia, que intensifican su escrutinio sobre los usuarios que las utilizan. Su mensaje es claro: no hay escapatoria real en un ecosistema tecnológico profundamente controlado por gobiernos y corporaciones.

    En conclusión, El Valle de la Vigilancia es una lectura incómoda pero necesaria. Su mensaje desmonta la ingenuidad de creer que la tecnología actual puede liberarnos de la vigilancia cuando, en realidad, ha sido diseñada para consolidarla. Un libro que no deja margen para ilusiones y que invita a reflexionar sobre la verdadera naturaleza de nuestra interacción con el mundo digital.
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  • Andrew Man
    5.0 out of 5 stars We all need to “wake up” to this technology
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 15, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Most people know that the tech companies - Google, Facebook, Amazon and Apple use surveillance on their customers. While surveillance may be not all be bad, for a democratic oversight of society, it has been continuously used for political gain to threaten nations and our freedom.
    The internet has always been about surveillance and control and the people need to wake up and find alternatives.
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  • N
    5.0 out of 5 stars Important read.
    Reviewed in India on June 11, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    An exceptional survey of the origins of Internet that goes beyond the privacy violation stories peddled by mainstream media.
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  • FFW
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Internet já nasceu para espionar...
    Reviewed in Brazil on March 12, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    Interessantíssima a história da evolução da Internet, desde seu início no começo da década de 60 (!). É um livro que deve ser lido por todos que se interessam por questões ligadas à privacidade e segurança online. Obrigatório!!
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