Privacy In 1984

1600 Words4 Pages

In the 21st century anything you read can be described as "Orwellian." Newspapers, books, and even reporters talk about the gathering of information, and the lack of privacy, that we, the citizens, have. "Orwellian" describes the conditions of privacy, where governments’ propaganda, surveillance, misinformation, and manipulation somehow are controlled. George Orwell wrote about this in great detail in his book 1984 about the issues citizens would be facing in that year. The lack of privacy they had was no problem to them because of everything the government was doing to keep them disinterested. Their intelligence was lessened to keep them focused on one thing only. Their focus was far away from government control that no matter how controlled …show more content…

We give up things like our full name, our address’, and even credit card numbers. It seems to be almost second nature to fill out forms online and just give an almost free pass into your life. The reality of these devices and websites are they don’t secure your privacy. Truthfully no one really pays attention to where all the information goes. When signing up on a new website most people wont take a second glance at the terms and conditions to see where and who has control of any information you put online. With the purchase of a smart phone, does not come the immediate thought that this is a personal tracking device that will let the government or anyone who wants to, know where you are at that exact moment. Timothy Lee wrote “Smartphones Have Privacy Risks” an article letting people know of hackers around the world and how easy it is to get information. This article is an immediate red flag to what information really is protected from other people. The smart phones that we use today are almost exact to what George Orwell wrote about in 1984. In Orwell's book he called these objects telescreens and they eliminated the privacy from all the citizens. Everywhere you went there was a telescreen or microphone watching and listening to you, even in your own bedroom. They were hidden in every corner of town and …show more content…

Owning a car is another way that will expose your privacy and parts of your life. Electronic surveillance is one way that you could be monitored without having a cellphone. Your location can be tracked when you drive your car. Whether it be from street cameras, or devices in your vehicle that will send out signals to locate it. "Law Enforcement Agencies Need the Ability to Intercept all Telecommunications" helps give a positive out look on why there are electronic surveillance outside of cellphones and laptops. Crime investigation is one way that is beneficial for your information to be known. "Each day, state, local, tribal, and federal law enforcement agencies use lawful electronic surveillance as a critical tool for enforcing the nation's laws and protecting the citizens they serve" they are able to use traffic cameras or security cameras from any store if they needed to help solve crimes. Today many of the devices that are used to help solve crimes collect way more information than needed. In 1984 citizens had no privacy in their homes or in the streets where there would be microphones listening to their every word. Without careful inspection they could be punished because of facial expressions or them saying one wrong word. Today that has occurred with online websites because they are tracked by the FBI. Everything you type or text is sent to the database, so when

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