Privacy in a Technological Age

LAW 661-01	Privacy in a Technological Age Seminar	3 credits
Do new technologies change our expectation of privacy? Should they? From students revealing all on MySpace and Facebook to corporate data breaches to vast databasing of Google searches to NSA wiretapping and phone and bank records surveillance, it is no longer clear what privacy means. When information can easily and cheaply be gathered, stored, sorted, and searched, what are the appropriate boundaries for personal privacy? This course will review (1) the historical roots of the concept of privacy in U.S. law; (2) the common clash between privacy and the public good; and (3) the shifting balance of privacy rights in rapidly changing technological contexts. We will examine these questions through the lens of consumer privacy, government records privacy, medical privacy, government surveillance, and online privacy. Grades will be determined by class participation and a final paper. Satisfies the writing requirement.

*courses not offered every year