Reassembling Surveillance Creep

Ask Risom Bøge; Peter Lauritsen

Reassembling Surveillance Creep

Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaper › Journal article › Research › peer-review

Abstract

We live in societies in which surveillance technologies are constantly introduced, are transformed, and spread to new practices for new purposes. How and why does this happen? In other words, why does surveillance “creep”? This question has received little attention either in theoretical development or in empirical analyses. Accordingly, this article contributes to this special issue on the usefulness of Actor-Network Theory (ANT) by suggesting that ANT can advance our understanding of ‘surveillance creep’. Based on ANT’s model of translation and a historical study of the Danish DNA database, we argue that surveillance creep involves reassembling the relations in surveillance networks between heterogeneous actors such as the watchers, the watched, laws, and technologies. Second, surveillance creeps only when these heterogeneous actors are adequately interested and aligned. However, obtaining and maintaining such alignment may be difficult.

Original language	English
Journal	Akademisk Kvarter
Volume	15
Pages (from-to)	27-39
Number of pages	13
ISSN	1904-0008
Publication status	Published - Oct 2017

Keywords

Overvågning
Surveillance creep
DNA-register

Access to Document

http://www.akademiskkvarter.hum.aau.dk/pdf/vol15/2.ARBøgePLauritsen_ReassemblingSurveillanceCreep.pdf

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Full text

ChIP: Childhood, Intimacy and Surveillance Practices
Albrechtslund, A. (Project manager), Bøge, A. R. (Participant), Sonne Damkjær, M. (Participant), Southerton, C. V. (Participant), Lauritsen, P. (Project manager), Fruekilde, E. K. (Participant) & Widmer, S. (Participant)
AUs Forskningsfond
01/11/2016 → 31/12/2023
Project: Research
Teledialog
Andersen, L. B. (Participant), Lauritsen, P. (Project manager), Danholt, P. (Participant), Halskov, K. (Participant) & Tietze, J. (Participant)
01/12/2013 → 31/05/2018
Project: Research

Cite this

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AB - We live in societies in which surveillance technologies are constantly introduced, are transformed, and spread to new practices for new purposes. How and why does this happen? In other words, why does surveillance “creep”? This question has received little attention either in theoretical development or in empirical analyses. Accordingly, this article contributes to this special issue on the usefulness of Actor-Network Theory (ANT) by suggesting that ANT can advance our understanding of ‘surveillance creep’. Based on ANT’s model of translation and a historical study of the Danish DNA database, we argue that surveillance creep involves reassembling the relations in surveillance networks between heterogeneous actors such as the watchers, the watched, laws, and technologies. Second, surveillance creeps only when these heterogeneous actors are adequately interested and aligned. However, obtaining and maintaining such alignment may be difficult.

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KW - Overvågning

KW - Surveillance creep

KW - DNA-register

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ER -

Reassembling Surveillance Creep

Abstract

Keywords

Access to Document

OpenUrl availability

Projects

ChIP: Childhood, Intimacy and Surveillance Practices

Teledialog

Cite this