Resisting digital surveillance reform: the arguments and tactics of communications service providers

Chivers, William 2019. Resisting digital surveillance reform: the arguments and tactics of communications service providers. Surveillance and Society 17 (3/4) , pp. 517-532. 10.24908/ss.v17i3/4.10836

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Abstract

Communications surveillance in the UK has been an increasingly contentious issue since the early 2000s. The Investigatory Powers Act 2016 is the result of a long series of attempts by the UK government to reform communications surveillance legislation. The consultations on this legislation — and on its precursor, the Draft Communications Data Bill 2012 — offer unique insight into how such efforts generate resistance to surveillance. This article draws attention to the role of communications service providers (CSPs) — who are increasingly being responsibilised to collect and retain communications data — within a multi-actor network of resistance. It also identifies the reasons CSPs gave for resisting these proposed reforms. Content analysis of the consultation documents reveals three themes that were central to the CSPs’ arguments: technology, territory, and trust. The article concludes by considering the implications for understanding resistance to contemporary digital surveillance.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Social Sciences (Includes Criminology and Education)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) H Social Sciences > HM Sociology
ISSN:	1477-7487
Funders:	Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)
Related URLs:	Publisher
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	12 September 2019
Date of Acceptance:	29 June 2018
Last Modified:	05 May 2023 10:43
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/125398

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