Nothing to hide, nothing to fear? The future of mass surveillance of electronic communications and the right to privacy in Europe

This thesis focuses on so-called mass surveillance of electronic communications by examining the effect of such practices on the right to privacy and their overall cost-effectiveness. Mass surveillance measures have given rise to serious human rights concerns, and there seems to be no convincing evidence of successful results. Additionally, these methods involve a particularly high risk of abuse. Therefore, the use of mass surveillance cannot be convincingly justified. Many European countries have passed or are planning to draft national laws allowing the use of mass surveillance practices. However, when looking at the case law of the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union, it seems likely that European mass surveillance regimes will be outlawed in the near future. More transparency is needed as well as more research on the costs and successfulness of such practices, while the results of already-existing research should be taken seriously and utilised in practice. Although there is currently high political pressure on governments to take action to improve national security, it is argued that, instead of mass surveillance, the focus should be on improving data protection and utilising targeted surveillance methods which have been proved to work well. This research utilises comparative, descriptive and doctrinal methodologies and is based on the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, international human rights conventions, relevant legislation on EU and national level, as well as relevant literature and official reports.Siirretty Doriast