Carissa Veliz. Privacy Is Power. Why and How You

1) Carissa Veliz argues in her book Privacy Is Power that a lack of privacy regulation has given tech companies too much power over personal data and individuals. 2) She explains how factors like the profitability of personal data, expanded post-9/11 government surveillance, and the myth that privacy is outdated have led to the current situation. 3) Veliz believes privacy is important for democracy and individual autonomy. While tech companies do not have complete omniscience, their collection and use of personal data allows them to exert soft and hard power over individuals in ways that can influence behavior.

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Carissa Veliz. Privacy Is Power. Why and How You

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International Data Privacy Law, 2022, Vol. 12, No.

3 BOOK REVIEW 255

Book Review
Carissa Veliz, Privacy Is Power: Why and How You
Should Take Back Control of Your Data, London:
Penguin Random House, 2020, 320pp, £8.99,

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ISBN: 9780552177719
Louise Wilsdon*

In Privacy Is Power, Carissa Veliz provides an insightful by obtaining a copy of all the personal data that corpora-
account of the relationship between privacy and power tions were collecting. Hence there was no incentive for
and sets out steps you can take to protect your privacy governments to regulate for privacy. The opposite was
in an age of big data. Veliz argues persuasively that a true—government surveillance became more powerful
largely unregulated tech industry is detrimental to free with the more data that businesses collected. The third
and democratic societies. contributing factor that Veliz identifies is the widespread
Privacy Is Power is directed at a wide and general audi- misconception—promulgated by big tech—that privacy is
ence: anyone with an interest in democracy, privacy, or outdated. It is in the interests of big tech for people to
big tech will find this book interesting and very readable. believe that privacy is cumbersome and unnecessary and
Veliz does not expound a theory of privacy as such, but that if you have done nothing wrong you have nothing
her argument is that information is power and big tech- to hide, but these ideas are intentionally misleading. Big
nology companies hold too much personal information tech’s business model relies on consumers sharing in-
about us. There are insufficient limits to the amount of creasingly more data about themselves.
personal information that companies can collect and Veliz describes two aspects of power: soft and hard
what they can do with it. Veliz believes that the battle for power. The power to motivate someone to think or act
one’s privacy is a struggle for power, and that personal in a way they might not otherwise have thought or done
data is toxic—two important themes of her book. She is soft power. Soft power can make us act in a way that
states that ‘[p]rivacy matters because the lack of it gives is inconsistent with our interests. It explains why we en-
others power over you.’1 There is a significant informa- gage with apps that do not make us happy or help to
tion imbalance between digital platforms like Google and fulfil our higher end goals. Hard power, Veliz argues, is
Facebook, and the users of those platforms. While Veliz when big tech takes our data from us without our con-
uses Google and Facebook as examples of big tech’s sent. An example of this is Google storing location data
unquenchable thirst for personal data, she also highlights even when users have turned off location history.
the risk of governments having too much information Technology companies can also exercise hard power by
about us and becoming authoritarian in nature. China is setting the rules we live by through code and thereby
a prime example with its social credit system influencing making it impossible for us to break those rules.
every aspect of its citizens’ lives. Veliz possibly overstates big tech’s omniscience in
Veliz’s explanation of how we arrived at this point is her account of big tech’s control over our data:
set out in Chapter Two. She outlines three factors that Tech companies’ power is constituted, on the one hand, by
contributed to the exponential growth in the collection having exclusive control of our data, and on the other, by
and use of personal data. First, the development of the ability to anticipate our every move, which in turn
Google and the discovery that personal data could be gives them opportunities to influence our behaviour, and
very profitable. Secondly, after 9/11 US Intelligence sell that influence to others - including governments.2
agencies saw an opportunity to expand their surveillance [emphasis added]

*Faculty of Law, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand. 2 Ibid., 54.

1 Veliz C, Privacy is Power: Why and How You Should Take Back Control Of
Your Data (London: Penguin Random House 2020), 48.

C The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press.

V
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs licence (https://creativecommon-
s.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial reproduction and distribution of the work, in any medium, provided the original work is not al-
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256 BOOK REVIEW International Data Privacy Law, 2022, Vol. 12, No. 3

Arguably, none of the big tech companies, individually technology is unavoidable and that we get to choose
or collectively, have the ability to anticipate our every how any new technology is used and regulated.
move. But that does not mean that the way big tech It is refreshing to read a book on privacy where a sig-
exploits personal data is acceptable, far from it. What is nificant portion of the text is devoted to a discussion of
of pressing concern is the power and influence big tech potential solutions. Veliz argues that personalized ad-
exerts over the digital information our fellow citizens vertising must be banned due to the risk of it corroding
access, especially those who rely solely on social media political processes. She explains how personalized ads

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for news. Veliz is mindful of this problem and believes ‘fracture the public sphere into individual parallel real-
that soft power is also about controlling the discourse. ities’.7 When citizens are exposed to completely differ-
We should all be concerned that a handful of global ent content in political advertising it becomes very
companies control the sources of digital news difficult to have reasonable and healthy political
information. debates. Veliz also maintains that personalized ads are
What Veliz does particularly well in this book is ex- more likely to be extreme than those designed for the
plain how ‘privacy is as collective as it is personal’.3 For whole population. Additionally, personalized ads can
those smug in the belief that they’re not naı̈ve enough fall under the radar of academics, journalists and politi-
to fall victim to big tech’s manipulation, Veliz’s book is cal opponents who have traditionally played an impor-
an imperative read. In Privacy Is Power, Veliz refers to tant role in fact-checking and critiquing political
the Cambridge Analytica scandal to illustrate how indi- advertising. Veliz believes that it is not as simple as ban-
vidual disclosures of personal information can put ev- ning political advertising because the demarcation of
what is political and what is not, is unclear. Veliz ques-
eryone else at risk. The essence of her argument is that
tions whether targeted advertising even delivers on its
individual privacy infringements can violate the right to
promise to business. While there has not been enough
privacy of other people, and the consequences of pri-
research to fully assess the effectiveness of targeted ad-
vacy losses are experienced collectively.4
vertising, Veliz believes there is reason to think that it is
Veliz captures the threat posed by big tech when she
not as profitable for business as initially thought. A 4
articulates why privacy is a collective endeavour. We
per cent effect in selling a product might not make an
should be concerned that our autonomy is compro-
ad cost-effective for a business, but the same effect on
mised by big tech, but we should, perhaps, be even
the number of voters could decide an election.8
more concerned that our fellow citizens’ autonomy is Veliz also argues for stopping the trade in personal
threatened. data—she believes that there is no good argument to
A democracy where people do not have autonomy is justify data brokers and that personal data should not
a farce. Veliz explains how ‘whoever has the data has the be for sale. Other potential solutions that she outlines
power’.5 Therefore, if big tech companies have most of include stopping default data collection, and the imple-
the power, we will have a society ruled by the wealthy mentation of fiduciary duties. If big tech is profiting
and if all the power lies with the state, we will have from personal data and putting individuals’ privacy at
some form of authoritarianism. Veliz explains that for risk in the process, then they should bear the risk. If the
the power of the state to be legitimate it must come status quo remains and big tech companies bear none of
from the people, not from holding vast amounts of our the risk, then they will continue to be reckless with our
personal information. Veliz’s clear and compelling ex- data. Veliz argues that large fines for breaches of fidu-
planation of the collective nature of privacy rights, re- ciary duties would ensure that it was also in share-
sponsibilities, and harms, is what makes this a standout holders’ best interests for tech companies to honour
book. those duties. Veliz advocates for improved cybersecurity
Veliz critiques the belief that all technology is prog- standards and putting an end to surreptitious sensitive
ress, and that technological developments are inevitable. inferences. She believes that the personal data that has
Her account of technology and its place in society is been collected unfairly should be deleted; and that all
evocative of the writing of social commentator and aca- personal data (with a few exceptions such as birth
demic, Evgeny Morozov, and his ‘technological sol- records) that has been collected legitimately, should be
utionism’.6 Veliz reminds her readers that no subject to a timeframe to delete it. Other responses set

3 Ibid., 75. 6 Morozov E, To Save Everything Click Here: The Folly of Technological
4 Ibid., 79. Solutionism (United States of America: Perseus Books Group 2013).
5 Ibid., 82. 7 Veliz 107.
8 Ibid., 124.
Book Review BOOK REVIEW 257

out by Veliz include curbs on government surveillance We must keep the pressure on our elected representa-
and a ban on some surveillance tools, such as facial rec- tives so that they know that privacy matters to us. Veliz
ognition, where those technologies are too dangerous calls for those who work in tech to do the ethically re-
and too vulnerable to abuse to be used safely. sponsible thing and encourage the companies they work
Veliz disputes common objections to data privacy— for to develop software that respects privacy, and if that
that limiting the collection of personal data will hamper is impossible, to look for employment elsewhere.
innovation or somehow allow adversarial powers to While outlining the steps that we, as individuals, can

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gain a technological advantage. She argues that the ben- take to better protect our privacy, Veliz acknowledges
efits of the data economy have been overhyped and its that ‘it is impossible for individuals alone to solve the
costs understated. Veliz may be too quick to dismiss the privacy problems we face’.9 However, she believes that
benefits of social media, even if she, like others, believes we must reject the unacceptable and demand change.
that they are currently outweighed by the harms of the Privacy is a fundamental right and critical to healthy
largely unregulated industry. functioning democracies.
However, Veliz makes an important and powerful ar- This is an important and timely book that outlines
gument that privacy protections do not have to come at the risks to freedom and democracy from inadequate
the cost of advancing technology. She believes that the privacy rules and a largely unregulated technology in-
greatest contributions of artificial intelligence, to date, dustry. While there are plenty of contemporary books
have not come about through the exploitation of per- describing the widespread exploitation of personal data,
sonal data. Veliz believes that allowing companies to what this book does particularly well is articulate why
profit from personal data creates an incentive for those we should care about other people’s privacy. Veliz’s ac-
companies to create and collect more of it. Veliz calls count of the collective nature of privacy is coherent and
for strict rules on what big tech can turn into data and readily accessible to those unfamiliar with the topic.
what they can do with personal data. She believes it is Not only does Veliz set out what the problem is, she
not too late but that we must act now. also provides many potential solutions and suggests im-
In Chapter Six, Veliz encourages us to better protect mediate and achievable measures for individuals to ‘take
our privacy and that of others. She sets out the steps back control’ of their data. A must-read for everyone.
that individuals can take to do this. Veliz reminds us
that the privacy choices we make today will impact on https://doi.org/10.1093/idpl/ipac007
the privacy we enjoy tomorrow. Individuals have a civic Advance Access Publication 9 March 2022
duty to protect their own privacy and to keep informed.

9 Ibid., 200.