Function Creep in Surveillance Situations: Identifying control paradoxes through agency and power relations using ANT

Abstract

In this thesis, I research the manner in which function creeps come to exist in surveillance situations, and how we may recognize them in future situations. Additionally, the ambiguous nature of function creeps is discussed. Finally, I will argue that function creeps are the product of a type of control paradox, where the agency of the ICTs used in surveillance situations leads to surveillers (both businesses and governments) taking more risks and through this, potentially disrupting their original goal. I utilize ANT and surveillance theories to provide a framework for my analyses, which consist of four case studies: two potential function creep situations, and two known function creep situations