In order to be able to take a side of this issue, we need to clarify some of the basic concepts that we will be exploring during the essay. Below, I define the three basic concepts of the paper: privacy, security and observation. However, it is important to note first that these terms do not have an exact definition and they are universally disputed issues. Another important influencing factor can be the context in which we put these expressions. They can have a different meaning in a democratic and in a totalitarian system. In this work I incorporate these phrases into a democratic system.

The meaning of privacy can differ from one person to another. It does not have an exact, generally accepted definition. As Lyon quotes (1994) Warren and Brandeis’s idea, privacy is “the individual’s right to be left alone” (p. 14). A more precise definition of privacy was formulated by the Open University during the surPRISE project (2014) “the ability of an individual to be left alone, out of public view, and in control of information about oneself” (p. 14). In this sense, privacy is a persons’ right to act freely, to speak and discuss questions with others without being restricted or observed by anyone.

The definition of security is formulated differently in every era. From the 17th to the 19th century security and privacy walked hand in hand. What is more, some interpretations describe security as a prerequisite of freedom which is closely related to privacy. Locke’s (Székely, Somodi & Szabó, 2017) opinion is that the basic function of security is to guarantee of freedom. In the middle of the 19th century, Jeremy Bentham (Székely, Somodi & Szabó, 2017) argued that freedom is not an individual value because security means predictability and this is an essential element for free action which in this case is equal to the private sphere. According to the surPRISE project (2014) security is “the condition of being protected from or not exposed to danger; a feeling of safety or freedom from or absence of danger.” This definition shows that people’s sense of security is at least as important, if not more, than security itself.

To conclude the term of security, it has many definitions and interpretations and it obviously means different things to everyone but there is a large enough consensus there, that is: it is need