Surveillance names systematic observation and monitoring of subjects through technological systems. It has evolved from direct optical observation through electronic networks to contemporary algorithmic prediction operating below conscious awareness.
The panopticon provided the classical model where visibility produces discipline. Contemporary surveillance operates differently. Subjects voluntarily expose themselves through social media and digital platforms whilst algorithmic systems process behavioural data to predict and shape future actions.
Military perception systems developed surveillance technologies that migrated into civilian domains. The camera obscura principle of seeing whilst remaining unseen structures power relationships across contexts.
Related: digital-unconscious, logistics-of-perception, panopticon, psychopolitics