Deep Packet Inspection Essay Project

How does society reconcile the technological benefits and privacy impacts of new technology? Deep packet inspection is just one seemingly neutral technological application that can have a significant impact on privacy rights and other basic civil liberties, especially as market forces, the enthusiasm of technologists and the influence of national security interests grow stronger.

In the summer and fall of 2008, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada contacted leading academics and professionals working in telecommunications, law, privacy, civil liberties and computer science to ask if they would contribute a short essay on DPI to a project tor create a resource on deep packet inspection. The project was intended to advance our Office’s understanding about a technology that has application in network traffic management, behavioural advertising, and law enforcement, and help Canadians understand the impact of just one component of the technology that underlies our networked society.

This web page presents the work of these academics, lawyers, researchers, activists and industry professionals. We value the time they invested in preparing their essays, and we hope that it will encourage further discussion around deep packet inspection and similar technologies.