'I've got nothing to hide' - Electronic surveillance of communications, privacy and the power of arguments

Essay from the year 2012 in the subject Law - Philosophy, History and Sociology of Law, grade: Sehr Gut, Stockholm University (IRI ), course: IT-Law, language: English, abstract: During the so-called 'War on Terror' the citizen's rights get more and more under pressure. The critics of this development are gaged with the argument 'Who does not have something to hide, has nothing to fear' . However there is a common understanding that there is a need of legal rules for acts of surveillance. In the context of Electronic Surveillance of Communications there has been a consideration if the collection of data and surveillance are consistent with the right of privacy apart from its legitimacy. Especially against the background that this is both a human right and a constitutional right.