How Much Can I Get for This?

The private sector gathers troves of personal data, but consumers perceive value in the way products and services are presented online. As a result, there is a direct correlation between personal data and personal benefit. Americans are less clear on the benefits of NSA data gathering.

A survey sponsored by Amy Zegart, the co-director of Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation, found a range of perspectives when it comes to NSA data collection. Survey respondents that perceived severe threats to the country were more apt to condone counterterrorism actions if they believed they were effective. In other words, Americans are willing to sacrifice some privacy if they are confident it has a worthwhile payoff. Zegart writes:

“NSA’s response to the Snowden leaks has focused inordinately on explaining the legality and oversight regime governing surveillance programs and on debunking false impressions about domestic spying. NSA has shown its programs are legal. It has not shown that they are valuable.”

In June, NSA Director Gen. Keith Alexander attempted to make a case for the value of NSA data gathering before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Alexander said that the agency’s surveillance helped stop more than 50 terror plots, some of which directly targeted the United States. For example, Najibullah Zazi planned to bomb the New York City subway but was caught after his handler in Pakistan sent an e-mail from a Yahoo! account that was previously linked to terrorism.

Yet, despite this and other examples, questions remain over the value of expansive data collection. Sens. Ron Wyden, Mark Udall, and Martin Heinrich wrote in a New York Times op-ed:

“The usefulness of the bulk collection program has been greatly exaggerated. We have yet to see any proof that it provides real, unique value in protecting national security. In spite of our repeated requests, the NSA has not provided evidence of any instance when the agency used this program to review phone records that could not have been obtained using a regular court order or emergency authorization.”

Resolving the Privacy and Security Debate

Ultimately, there are two core perspectives in the privacy and security debate. One group sees NSA activities as infringing on civil liberties and demands reform in how the spy agency gathers data. Another group condones the NSA activities provided there is meaningful value realized because of that information. Perhaps a resolution to the debate lies somewhere between these two views.

The NSA needs to be accountable for the data it gathers and describe how all this information has contributed to a more secure homeland.

The revelations from Snowden’s released documents have brought NSA programs into the cold light of day. With public awareness comes an opportunity to review the data gathering activities and whether they present a threat to the Fourth Amendment. The best public forum for this review is the U.S. Congress, where the American people are represented. Transparent debates that yield legislative reforms could bring the NSA’s activities more in line with what the public desires, though to do so means Americans need to have a better understanding of what the NSA does, and as mentioned in a previous installment in this series, many Americans remain unclear about the programs.

At the same time, there needs to be a more focused effort to describe the value realized because of the data gathering. The activities may be legal, but that is not a sufficient argument to resolve the debate. The NSA needs to be accountable for the data it gathers and describe how all this information has contributed to a more secure homeland.

And while weighing how other organizations exploit the benefits of Big Data – such as DHS’ keyword monitoring or tech giants’ collection of personal information – the public needs to take responsibility for the information it releases into the public domain. Social media is a public tool where any sense of privacy is a misconception. Accounts with online companies (such as Facebook) grant access to personal information. Preserving privacy is partly the responsibility of the individual.

Digital technology is progressing faster than debates over privacy and security. Nevertheless, the public needs to continue engaging the issue and America’s leaders need to promote a transparent discussion of how much data is needed and what it profits the nation.