Daily Surveillance in My Life

Surveillance is an ever present part of almost all of our daily lives. Personally I live in a condo building that has security cameras on all entrances and in all corners of the garage and building. When I used to work in retail I would use surveillance to help prevent and catch those people who were stealing from my store. While all of these forms of surveillance are a part of our lives, and often even unacknowledged, today the most popular form of surveillance for my generation is the Internet.

I am an avid user of the Internet and multiple social networking sites. Until recently I was not completely aware of my participation in surveillance as an observer. I was always more focused on protecting myself from those who might try to obtain my information. But, once I began using Facebook on a more regular basis I noticed myself checking pages of those people I was friends with to see what they had been up to. At first glance this seems completely innocent, until it becomes a habit or a part of our everyday routine. I personally do not feel compelled to check my Facebook or MySpace on a regular basis. However, when I was keeping track of my surveillance habits for two days I became aware just how often I visited the site while I was bored. I found I spent more time on the site then I had originally thought. Outside of the social networking sites I am a part of I also found myself constantly checking the blog PerezHilton.com. In a way this is a form of surveillance because I am checking for updates about the lives of other people.

After spending the 2 days tracking my participation in surveillance, I was extremely aware of how much this is a part of people's everyday lives. I have decided that if I do not want someone to be able to find personal information out about me, I should be conscious not to be on the other end of surveillance as an observer rather than a subject.