International Council on Global Privacy and Security, By Design

Make no mistake, privacy is a necessary condition for both a prosperous and free society. However, ever since the tragic events of 11 September 2001 and the terrorist acts that have followed, privacy has been increasingly cast as an antagonist of public safety. (I use the term public safety as an all-encompassing term that includes the necessary security measures to bring it about.) This zero-sum, win/lose paradigm of privacy versus public safety is not only wrong, it is extremely dangerous and must be brought to an end. It is wrong because privacy and public safety can indeed coexist, resulting in greater efficacy for both. It is dangerous because, in the tension between privacy and public safety, privacy will always lose, and this loss will directly endanger not only freedom but the prosperity that we enjoy as a free and open society.