There has been much talk in recent years about the End of Privacy. Between hidden RFID tags in consumer goods, private for-profit corporations acquiring, retaining and selling personal information and surveillance cameras in orbit and on street corners, it seems like the end of privacy may have come some time ago.

Recently, new scandals involving loss of personal information from several corporations have broken, pointing out our loss of privacy. Are these breaches going to galvanize public opinion in such a way that we begin to demand that governments and corporations treat personal information with a modicum of care? Will people resign themselves to a new world order wherein privacy is a quaint ancient notion? Will there develop a gulf between nations that create and enforce privacy legislation and those that do not?

For more information about the increasing lack of privacy, particularly in the United States, see Robert O’Harrow Jr.’s book and multimedia investigation No Place To Hide.