BIG BROTHER
TECHNOLOGIES

THIS MONTHʼS ISSUE
Why we chose…
Big Brother Technologies
We chose to examine forecasts for surveillance technologies for this month’s STEEP
Report because the technologies are without precedent and the social implications
could change the future of our entire civilization.
There is surprisingly little discussion in the media about the rapid development of
information technologies that will be used to track individuals anywhere on the globe
in real time.
These technologies will not be implemented as part of some government scheme to
control citizens, but all for useful commercial and government applications –
marketing, logistics, health policy, human resources, and security.
This doesn’t change the gravity of the ethical (and business!) implications of what’s
next for surveillance technologies.
The topic requires dialogue sooner rather than later.

A portfolio of surveillance technologies will soon be able to track most
of the world’s population in real time.
These technologies, and the knowledge they give you, will provide
interesting new capabilities, and many liabilities.
Through technologies such as GPS, RFID, and facial recognition, we are rapidly developing
the capacity to track billions of people in real time.
The power of ubiquitous computing and sensing will give companies and government
agencies dramatic new powers and significant liabilities.
Our societies may never be the same.
Talk to your employees, your lawyers, and your elected officials about the implications.

The Trends

A portfolio of information technologies is converging in the near future (2010+) with dramatic social
consequences, and plenty of business opportunities, too:
All of these technologies have existed in one form or another for years, but will soon be coming together to
create a seamless global network of data about human beings, where they go and what they do.
Radio Frequency Global Positioning Facial recognition
Identification Tags (RFID) Systems (GPS) software
Biometrics Ubiquitous video