Handbook of Surveillance Technologies (3rd Ed) - The Real Faces of ...

Handbook of Surveillance Technologies
By the 1600s, English writers and inventors mention the development of submarine devices
for surreptitiously approaching foreign surface vessels and “blowing them up.”
In France, Armand-Jean du Plessis, Cardinal, Duc de Richelieu, used extensive intelligence
services to protect his position and to influence the unity and future of France. He is quoted as
saying “Secrecy is the first essential in affairs of the State.”
Rivalries between the English and French continued to foment as Europeans migrated across
the Atlantic to settle in the pioneer wilderness of North America. Conflicts with other colonists
and conquerors erupted abroad, as well, such as the War of the Spanish Succession, in 1702,
followed by various other military outbreaks. As the colonies grew, and borders were drawn,
tight security watches were put in place to control immigration and smuggling.
By the mid-1770s, George Washington was making regular use of coded messages and
foreign agents to further the aims of the American Revolution. In July 1789, Washington and
the First Congress established legal ports of entry and the U.S. Customs Service.
Border surveillance and search and seizure decisions relied heavily on human judgment
until the late 1900s. Then electronic devices were installed to aid officials in scanning vehicles
and license plates and patrolling borders at night. By the 21st century, some crossings were
equipped to store names, identifying documents, personal characteristics, and frequency of
border crossings for future reference. The public has virtually no control over how this information
is used or shared with other agencies. In 2008, the Department of Homeland Security
announced that data collected at border checkpoints would be kept for up to 15 years. Some
of it is exempt from Privacy Act protections.
4.b. Establishing Surveillance-Related Agencies
As populations migrated westward across America in the early 1800s, crime and gangsterism
increased. Emphasis on law enforcement and surveillance increased, especially as farmers and
settlers, including women and children, began to outnumber the original trappers and prospectors.
The populace became increasingly concerned about law and order and family safety.
Smuggling wasn’t the only thing that motivated lawmakers to approve surveillance practices
in early America. A variety of regional currencies and a general wild west mentality resulted
in widespread counterfeiting and robbing of trains. In 1806, the Enforcement of Counterfeiting
Prevention Act was established to curb some of these problems. The act enabled U.S. Marshals
and District Attorneys to officially police counterfeiting operations, a responsibility that was
later transferred to the Secretary of the Treasury.
To curtail counterfeiting, the National Currency Act was enacted in 1863 to create and
regulate a national currency.
Detective Agencies and Secret Service Agents
In 1846, a barrel-maker from Scotland, Allan Pinkerton (1819–1884), exposed a gang of
counterfeiters, made history, and became Deputy Sheriff and, subsequently, Chicago’s first official
city detective. He founded Pinkerton’s National Detective Agency in 1850—one of the
oldest and most prominent detective agencies in history. In the following decades, Pinkerton’s
business and reputation grew as he and his agents investigated train robberies, embezzlement,
assassination plots, spies, and much more. As a private establishment, Pinkerton had the flexibility
to pursue criminals across state lines.
In 1861, Abraham Lincoln appointed Pinkerton as his first secret service agent and, during
the Civil War, Pinkerton organized a secret service within the U.S. Army.
General George McClellan employed Pinkerton to gather intelligence behind the lines
of the Confederate forces during the Civil War. Pinkerton provided information on defenses,
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