> With that said I think the existence of the unregulated internet was likely anomalous. If ever you wanted privacy, you always have had to ensure the only two beings with access to the information communicated were yourself and the intended recipient. Is it really possible for a society to permit the existence of any large organisation for private communication without eavesdropping?
It wasn’t feasible to open up every letter and scan it before resealing it outside of prisons then or now, but it is for electronic communication, and it will be done in the name of safety. The same is true of monitoring every conversation you have with friends; impossible before outside prisons, easy now electronically. This is what is entirely anomalous.
We have seen large letter censorship apparatus before. We have seen mass spying before. Implementing these systems (with just humans) has been done more than once at large scales (think Second World War, East Germany).
But regardless secure communication had to be undertaken between individuals. If the state wished to spy on people who did not have the ability to encrypt and decrypt their communication securely all they had to do was target them. Now the computer has made encryption into a technology rather than a skill.
I would suggest that’s just as anomalous as the ability to monitor electronic communication.
It wasn’t feasible to open up every letter and scan it before resealing it outside of prisons then or now, but it is for electronic communication, and it will be done in the name of safety. The same is true of monitoring every conversation you have with friends; impossible before outside prisons, easy now electronically. This is what is entirely anomalous.