The Right To Privacy In The Age Of Surveillance Capitalism: A Public Law Response
- IJLLR Journal
- 13 hours ago
- 2 min read
Preeti Bhagat, Reva University, Bangalore
ABSTRACT
Surveillance and the right to privacy are frequently viewed as two opposing ideals; one emphasizes individual freedom, while the other emphasizes institutional or governmental security concerns. The study focuses on the goals and evolution of ideas, such as recognizing privacy as a legal right and digital privacy and the technological revolution. The paper also highlights the Indian background in relation to Article 21 of the Constitution. What academics refer to as "surveillance capitalism" has emerged as a result of the quick development of digital technology and data-driven business models, which have turned personal data into a valuable economic asset. Large digital companies are the driving force behind this paradigm, which regularly gathers, tracks, profiles, and monetizes user data often without meaningful consent presenting previously unheard-of obstacles to the constitutional right to privacy. This study explores the conflict between the ubiquitous data extraction methods found in modern digital ecosystems and the basic right to privacy, as guaranteed by Article 21 of the Indian Constitution and upheld in Justice K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India. The study assesses the effectiveness of current public law remedies, such as statutory frameworks, judicial interventions, and constitutional protections, using a doctrinal and analytical methodology tackling platform domination, behavioral manipulation, and new types of algorithmic surveillance. The study makes the case that a stronger rights-based framework based on accountability, transparency, and data minimization is required in order to control the unequal power dynamics between individuals and corporate data collectors. In order to ensure that the digital economy develops without jeopardizing individual liberty and democratic principles, the study ultimately suggests a more robust public law response that balances constitutional privacy guarantees with the reality of surveillance capitalism. This study critically looks at how surveillance capitalism, which is supported by the government and corporate actors in India, threatens the right to privacy and, consequently, other essential rights like equality, freedom of expression, and association. It examines how other jurisdictions have struck a balance between economic innovation and privacy protection using a comparative public law lens, and it determines if India's legal system adequately protects its inhabitants from the exploitative aspects of digital capitalism. “Through a doctrinal and analytical approach, this paper will attempt to prove that in the era of surveillance capitalism, the right to privacy is a moral and democratic necessity rather than just a legal one. While India's continuous digital transformation holds promise for efficiency and progress, it also runs the risk of solidifying a surveillance culture in which people are constantly observed, classified, and influenced. Surveillance capitalism will undermine democratic citizenship itself unless it is offset by a robust public law reaction based on human rights and constitutional morality. Making sure that technology works for people rather than against them is the difficult part. This paper seeks to demonstrate that the growing phenomenon of surveillance capitalism poses a significant threat to the fundamental right to privacy under Indian constitutional law.
Keywords: Right to Privacy, Surveillance Capitalism, Public Law, Data Protection, Constitutional Law, Digital Rights.
