THE GOVERNMENT IS WATCHING YOU. DON'T WORRY, YOU'RE PROBABLY NOT THAT INTERESTING.

THE GOVERNMENT IS WATCHING YOU. DON'T WORRY, YOU'RE PROBABLY NOT THAT INTERESTING.

THEY SAID IT WAS ABOUT SECURITY. YOUR PRIVACY DIDN'T GET THE MEMO.

WELCOME TO THE SURVEILLANCE ECONOMY.

Congratulations, human. You live in an era where your phone knows where you sleep, what you search for, what you buy, and possibly how long you stare at the refrigerator before deciding you're not hungry.

Meanwhile, you're still struggling to remember your own passwords.

But don't worry. It's probably just technology being technology.

For decades, governments have developed surveillance systems capable of collecting enormous amounts of information. Phone records, internet activity, communications metadata and other digital traces have all become part of the modern intelligence landscape.

And then came Edward Snowden.

THE MAN WHO BROUGHT THE RECEIPTS.

In 2013, Edward Snowden, a former intelligence contractor, revealed classified documents exposing extensive surveillance programs operated by the US National Security Agency (NSA).

The revelations showed that government surveillance was considerably more sophisticated and extensive than many people understood.

One particularly controversial program involved collecting telephone metadata on a massive scale.

Not necessarily the actual conversations, but information about who contacted whom, when, and for how long.

Basically, the government didn't always need to hear what you were saying. Sometimes knowing who you called was enough to make an interesting diagram.

Imagine explaining that to your grandmother.

"Don't worry, Grandma. They aren't necessarily listening to your conversations. They're just interested in your communication patterns."

Oh. Wonderful. Much better.

YOUR PRIVACY HAS LEFT THE BUILDING.

Here's where things become particularly interesting.

Modern digital life produces an extraordinary amount of personal information.

Your location history, browsing habits, shopping preferences, social connections and app activity can reveal surprisingly intimate details about your life.

Some information is collected by companies for advertising and analytics. Other information may be obtained by government agencies through legal processes or intelligence programs.

These are different systems, with different purposes and rules.

But from the average person's perspective, the result can feel remarkably similar:

Someone knows an awful lot about you, and you have absolutely no idea how much.

You clicked on a pair of shoes once.

Now every website behaves like an emotionally attached salesperson who refuses to accept rejection.

SECURITY: THE UNIVERSAL EXCUSE.

Governments argue that surveillance capabilities can help identify threats, investigate criminal activity and protect national security.

And security matters. Nobody wants to live in a world where serious threats go unnoticed.

But there's a rather inconvenient question:

How much privacy should a society surrender to feel protected?

And who gets to decide when enough is enough?

The debate surrounding mass surveillance isn't simply about having something to hide.

It's about having somewhere to exist without being constantly observed.

Even perfectly innocent people might prefer not to have every aspect of their lives turned into data.

Radical concept, apparently.

THE FUNNIEST PART? YOU AGREED TO THE COOKIES.

You willingly carry a tracking device everywhere.

You give applications access to your microphone, camera, contacts and location.

You accept 47 pages of terms and conditions without reading a single sentence.

Then you become suspicious when an advertisement appears for something you discussed yesterday.

Humanity has developed artificial intelligence, explored space and mapped the human genome.

Yet we still press "ACCEPT ALL" because we're too impatient to read three paragraphs.

Perhaps the real intelligence operation is convincing us to do everything ourselves.

NOTHING TO HIDE. EVERYTHING TO QUESTION.

The Snowden revelations changed the global conversation about digital privacy, government power and surveillance.

They also demonstrated that some of the most extraordinary developments in modern history don't require aliens, secret laboratories or underground civilizations.

Sometimes, all you need is a government contractor, a collection of classified documents and a very uncomfortable press conference.

So go ahead. Enjoy your smartphone.

It has a beautiful screen, excellent cameras and a suspiciously good memory.