Cato Surveillance Conference 2021

Americans in the age of COVID-19 are relying more than ever on digital networks to work, socialize, and learn—which makes safeguarding the privacy and security of those networks even more essential. The 2021 Cato Surveillance Conference brings together an outstanding lineup of academics, technologists, policymakers, and privacy advocates to discuss the most pressing topics in privacy and digital civil liberties, kicking off with a keynote address from Sen. Ron Wyden (D‑OR). Speakers will examine how the “surveillance-industrial complex” is increasingly outsourcing surveillance that used to be the exclusive province of intelligence agencies to a burgeoning private surveillance industry. We’ll look at how a year of virtual classrooms has given rise to a disturbing trend of schools employing spyware to monitor students. We’ll explore how anonymity—increasingly the scapegoat for everything toxic about online culture—is crucial to free speech and a vibrant culture of dissent. And we’ll demonstrate just how vulnerable the ubiquitous “Internet of Things” makes us with a live hacking demonstration. Join us live online, streaming from the Cato Institute.

9:00 - 9:05 AM

Welcome and Introduction

Welcoming and Introduction - Opening Keynote: The Fourth Amendment is Not for Sale

Video Player is loading.

Current Time 0:00

Duration 0:00

Loaded: 0%

Stream Type LIVE

Remaining Time 0:00

Julian Sanchez, Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

9:05 - 9:30 AM

Opening Keynote: The Fourth Amendment is Not for Sale

Senator Ron Wyden (D‑OR)

9:30 - 10:45 AM

Panel — The Surveillance Industrial Complex

Panel — The Surveillance Industrial Complex

Video Player is loading.

Current Time 0:00

Duration 0:00

Loaded: 0%

Stream Type LIVE

Remaining Time 0:00

Kashmir Hill, Technology Reporter, New York Times
Dana Priest, Investigative Reporter, Washington Post
Thomas Rid, Professor of Strategic Studies, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University
Moderated by Julian Sanchez, Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

10:45 - 11:00 AM

Morning Break

11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Flash Talks

Targeted but Not Silenced: Government Surveillance and Retaliation against Immigration Organizers in the United States

Video Player is loading.

Current Time 0:00

Duration 19:20

Loaded: 0%

Stream Type LIVE

Remaining Time 19:20

Julie Mao, Deputy Director, Just Futures Law

Surveillance at School

Surveillance at School

Video Player is loading.

Current Time 0:00

Duration 19:22

Loaded: 0%

Stream Type LIVE

Remaining Time 19:22

Elizabeth Laird, Director, Equity in Civic Technology, Center for Democracy and Technology

Clearview AI: Lessons Learned over the Last Two Years for the Future of Privacy

Clearview AI: Lessons Learned over the Last Two Years for the Future of Privacy

Video Player is loading.

Current Time 0:00

Duration 0:00

Loaded: 0%

Stream Type LIVE

Remaining Time 0:00

Freddy Martinez, Policy Analyst, Open the Government

12:00 - 1:00 PM

Lunch

1:00 - 2:15 PM

Panel — Anonymity and Freedom

Panel — Anonymity and Freedom

Video Player is loading.

Current Time 0:00

Duration 0:00

Loaded: 0%

Stream Type LIVE

Remaining Time 0:00

Jeff Kosseff, Associate Professor of Cybersecurity Law, United States Naval Academy
Afsaneh Rigot, Fellow, Technology and Public Purpose Project, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University

2:15 - 2:30 PM

Afternoon Break

2:30 - 3:00 PM

Internet of Things Hacking Demo