Belated 2000 privacy legislation could have made surveillance capitalism largely illegal.

Evidence

The commissioners proceeded to outline federal legislation that would have protected consumers online despite the dominant bias against regulation and in favor of treating internet operations as free speech. The recommendations demanded “clear and conspicuous” notice of information practices; consumer choice over how personal information is used; access to all personal information, including rights to correct or delete; and enhanced security of personal information. Had these been translated into law, it is quite possible that many of the foundational elements of surveillance capitalism would have been either plainly illegal or at least subject to public examination and contest. — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 363

Categorization

• QUESTION: A counterfactual worth exploring: which exact elements of behavioral surplus harvesting would the FTC’s proposed notice/choice/access/security rules have outlawed?
• SEED: Angle for an essay: the near-miss — a regulatory path not taken in 2000 that would have preempted the whole surveillance economy, matching the reader’s ‘X would have been illegal’ framing.
• XREF: connects to: Surveillance capitalism emerged gradually and initially read as incidental corporate missteps — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 51; Past policy tools fail against surveillance capitalism because they target obsolete problems — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 193

Broader Connections

• Surveillance capitalism emerged gradually and initially read as incidental corporate missteps #qualifies (0.75) — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 51
• Past policy tools fail against surveillance capitalism because they target obsolete problems #corroborates (0.75) — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 193