Nowadays technology is increasingly being used to monitor what people are saying and doing (for example, through cellphone tracking and security cameras). In many cases, the people being monitored are unaware that this is happening. Do you the advantages of this development outweigh the disadvantages?

Over the last few years, advances in technology have allowed governments, the police and privately-owned companies to keep the public under constant surveillance. Is this, however, a development we should welcome? Certainly, there are benefits. Recording private information of public can prevent a lot of crimes. Security cameras can decrease amount of crimes: if criminals see them, they may think twice about stealing a car and breaking into a building. If a crime is carried out, then recorded videos may provide useful evidence for the police. For instance, in the 2010s the rate of terrorist acts was significantly decreased in Russia due to recorded logs and personal information. On the other hand, there are a number of concerns. In countries where human rights are ignored, the use of street cameras and listening devices me be harmful for society. People should be able to hold meetings and express their opinions without their privacy being broken. For example, according to the American survey of 2019, the fear of being tracked and listened has decreased trust of people in the government and the police that increased discontent among citizens. To sum up, I believe that even though privacy is affected due to the overuse of these technologies, the benefits are more, as it is useful in the reduction of crimes and helps the countries in combating terrorism.