The "nothing to hide nothing to fear" myth
Governments often claim if you have nothing to hide you have nothing to fear. Governments have used this myth to help kill millions. Here is one of the worst examples. When Hitler gained power in Germnay in 1933, one of his first actions was to order a national census. Although Hitler's hatred of Jews was becoming known by this time, there was nothing unusual about a census. This a routine part of government to help plan for the futures resources the country will need e.g. schools. So, there was no obvious need to fear correctly filling information such as religion on the census form if ther had nothing to hide. In fact the data from this census was used by the Nazi governemt with help of IBM's subsidary in Germany to hunt down and exterminate Jews in Germany. The same stragety of census followed extermination was carried out in many of the countries that Germany invaded.
After these facts were revealed to the public in a book titled "IBM and the Holocaust" in 2001 IBM's German subsidary donated $3,000,000 to the German Holocaust fund.
The nothing hide nothing fear myth is perpetuated by governments who have been caught carrying out mass survelliance. If Nazi Germany had had then the mass survelliance capability that the UK and US governments ahve today, there would surely have been even fewer survivors of the Holocaust. If we feel complacent that we are safe because we live in a democracy, remember that Hitler was democratically elected! Democracies can and do fall and the data collected by surveillance today will be avaialble to be used and abused by any futures government for decades to come.
I find it deeply worrying that so many people I discuss mass surveillance with still believe this myth and make no effort to protect thier privacy.