Whether you’ve been keeping tabs on the biggest cybersecurity stories of the year or have a fresh new interest in the topic as 2024 draws to a close, it’s been an eventful twelve months. From the swathes of medical data thefts to the threat of VPN bans in Russia and Pakistan, there’s always a fight occurring on the cyber battlefield.
As the year winds down, it’s a great time to check out privacy-related documentaries – after all, there’s no better way to see how the issues of the past have shaped our current digital landscape.
With that in mind, I’ve rounded up my favorite privacy documentaries. I’ll run through each of them below, and explain what makes them required watching for today’s champions of digital security.
1. The Great Hack (2019)
This Netflix documentary covers an ongoing problem in the digital realm – the commodification of our personal data. It's a gritty deep-dive into the Cambridge Analytica scandal which was embroiled in multiple political upheavals – including Brexit and the 2016 presidential election – and prompted a global discussion about the malleable influence of social media.
Brittany Kaiser, a former employee of Cambridge Analytica, and a whole host of interviewees underscore just how much of a data trail we leave across the web, every day, every session – and the nefarious things that Big Tech can use this information for without us even knowing.
My favorite thing about The Great Hack is how it breaks down the scandal. It's digestible, even if you're not a cybersecurity expert, and uses visualizations and graphics to explore the concept of data points, and how they were collected by Cambridge Analytica in an attempt to sway public behavior.
2. The Social Dilemma (2020)
If you're using the internet, then you no doubt know that social media can be dangerous – and I'm not talking about your passive-aggressive Aunt on Facebook. Social media platforms are notoriously data-hungry, which is exactly what The Social Dilemma digs into, as well as its more insidious overarching influence on virtually every facet of our lives.
Rather than being a cut-and-dry documentary, The Social Dilemma mixes dramatizations into the story, following an inconspicuous American family in between interviews. It is chilling to see a high-school-age boy become radicalized before your eyes, and the effect of impossible online beauty standards has a heart-breaking impact on his sister.
Candid interviews detail the dangers of social media and how, in many cases, it’s designed to be as addictive as possible, turning us and our data into the most valuable commodity possible.
3. Terms and Conditions May Apply (2013)
We’re all guilty of this – accepting cookies or agreeing to terms and conditions without reading the accompanying text. Who has the time, right? This documentary delves into how companies take advantage of this, and how we willingly invite danger into our cyber-lives when shopping or installing apps by hitting that agree button.
The documentary also takes aim at Big Tech firms, like Google and Meta, for their confusing privacy policies that deliberately obscure their intentions behind jargon – allowing them to collect huge swathes of information with user permission, but perhaps not their knowledge.
It’s a grim dive into just how valuable our data is and the lengths that big companies will go to obtain it – and you’ll definitely customize your cookie preferences the next time you’re asked.
4. Citizenfour (2014)
Director Laura Poitras gives us unprecedented access to one of the most ground-breaking moments in cybersecurity history: Edward Snowden’s decision to unveil the scope of the NSA’s surveillance.
The documentary follows Snowden, Poitras, and fellow journalist Glenn Greenwald as they dig into the scandal. It's an agonizing process – tension permeates every scene, unfolding over the course of eight days in a hotel room in Hong Kong, as the picture of the privacy violations becomes clearer and clearer.
Citizenfour scooped the award for Best Documentary Feature at the 87th Academy Awards, and remains a chilling look at the NSA scandal as it unfolded in real-time, reminding us of the voracious nature of government surveillance.
5. We Are Legion – The Story Of The Hacktivists (2012)
For many people, the "hacktivist" group Anonymous will be their first introduction to online vigilante groups and the ongoing fight for our digital freedoms. We Are Legion charts the group's history – stretching back to its origins on 4Chan.
Anonymous claims to be motivated to combat oppression, invasions of privacy, and threats to free speech, and have taken aim at some seriously big targets over the years. In fact, Anonymous was involved in the infamous Sarah Palin email hack and even the Arab Spring.
Interestingly, the documentary contains interviews with members of the group, past and present, and industry experts, who dig into the question of whether Anonymous really is the internet’s watchdog or just a band of pranksters stirring up controversy.
