Abstract
The book Surveillance Valley: The Secret Military History of the Internet by Yasha Levine, a Russian-born American investigative journalist, serves as an omen which strikes a rather familiar chord with privacy activists’ concern about the Internet’s pervasive reach. The entire thrust of Levine’s work inspires very little confidence in the positive side of the web, and in fact creates an air of paranoia about it. The central focus of the book remains an investigation into the role of the United States (US) government, federal agencies and its ties with private technology corporations. The recurring emphasis of only a single country’s role in using the Internet for military ends is problematic. However, the work despite this inherent shortcoming is aimed at opening a debate about the genesis of the Internet, its evolution and overlapping relationship between different government institutions and Internet giant companies.
Keyword(s)
Yasha Levine, Surveillance Valley, Secret Military, History, Internet