--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are people who are always going to…" description: "\"There are people who are always going to try to engage in activity that is illegal and they're going to try to subvert surveillance. But everybody shou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/laura-poitras-22687_activity_there-are-people-who-are-always-going-to_928708.jpg" --- # There are people who are always going to try to engage in… ![“There are people who are always going to try to engage in activity that is illegal and they're going to try to subvert surveillance. But everybody should not give up their liberties and rights to privacy because some people are going to [do that]. We shouldn't stop or limit our basic liberties…” quote by Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/laura-poitras-22687_activity_there-are-people-who-are-always-going-to_928708.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/laura-poitras-22687_activity_there-are-people-who-are-always-going-to_928708.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/laura-poitras-22687_activity_there-are-people-who-are-always-going-to_928708.jpg) > “There are people who are always going to try to engage in activity that is illegal and they're going to try to subvert surveillance. But everybody should not give up their liberties and rights to privacy because some people are going to \[do that\]. We shouldn't stop or limit our basic liberties because some people are going to engage in criminal activities.” [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We must protect privacy even if some misuse it; liberty shouldn't be sacrificed for security. **In simple terms:** Protect privacy despite misuse. Key Takeaway Guard rights, limit overreach. Themes privacy liberty security civil rights Mood concerned defensive Type ethical political When to use this quote - policy debate - activism - legal reform Key Concepts surveillance civil liberties risk assessment Questions to Reflect On - How to ensure security without eroding privacy? - What safeguards can prevent abuse? A Different Perspective Balancing security and freedom is complex. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Activity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/activity/) [Basic Liberties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basic-liberties-1496687/) [Criminals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criminals/) [Cybersecurity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cybersecurity/) [Everybody Liberties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/everybody-liberties-1496686/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Giving up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving-up/) [Illegal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illegal/) [Liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberty/) [Limits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limits/) [Not giving up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/not-giving-up/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Privacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/privacy/) [Privacy People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/privacy-people-735179/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Rights Privacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights-privacy-1496688/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Surveillance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surveillance/) [Surveillance Everybody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surveillance-everybody-1496685/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) ## Related quotes > [“The only way to even try to limit file sharing, is to introduce surveillance of everybody’s private communication.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-engstr-m-rick-falkvinge/the-only-way-to-even-try-to-limit-file-sharing-is-to-introduce/) [Christian Engström Rick Falkvinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-engstr-m-rick-falkvinge/) > [It is my conviction that movie stars are not entitled to any rights of privacy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-kilgallen/it-is-my-conviction-that-movie-stars-are-not-entitled-to-any-rights/) [Dorothy Kilgallen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-kilgallen/) > [The War on Terror has been and continues to be, above all, a war on the most basic liberties and political safeguards that we're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-greenwald/the-war-on-terror-has-been-and-continues-to-be-above-all-a-war-on-the/) [Glenn Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-greenwald/) > [“Similarly, those Internet tycoons who are apparently so willing to devalue our privacy are vehemently protective of their own. Google insisted on a policy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/similarly-those-internet-tycoons-who-are-apparently-so-willing-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The many pro-surveillance advocates I have debated since Snowden blew the whistle have been quick to echo Eric Schmidt’s view that privacy is for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-greenwald/the-many-pro-surveillance-advocates-i-have-debated-since-snowden-blew/) [Glenn Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-greenwald/) > [Reputations are maintained by the outside world, and they're created by it, too, by and large. And they serve as a hell of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-penn/reputations-are-maintained-by-the-outside-world-and-they-re-created/) [Sean Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-penn/) > [The reason for privacy is not so that people will not know you go to the bathroom. It's to allow certain things to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/the-reason-for-privacy-is-not-so-that-people-will-not-know-you-go-to/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [You lose your privacy, and sometimes, people don't see you as human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-wayans/you-lose-your-privacy-and-sometimes-people-don-t-see-you-as-human/) [Shawn Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-wayans/) > [“The multiple human needs and desires that demand privacy among two or more people in the midst of social life must inevitably lead to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kahn/the-multiple-human-needs-and-desires-that-demand-privacy-among-two-or/) [David Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kahn/) > [In terms of security and privacy, what people care about the most is the privacy of their messages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-koum/in-terms-of-security-and-privacy-what-people-care-about-the-most-is/) [Jan Koum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-koum/) > [For the longest time, I was just real nervous about privacy and people prying into my personal business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-earnhardt-jr/for-the-longest-time-i-was-just-real-nervous-about-privacy-and-people/) [Dale Earnhardt Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-earnhardt-jr/) > [“Sphere of privacy, people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-a-huss/sphere-of-privacy-people/) [J.A. Huss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-a-huss/) > [I am entitled to my privacy. People say, 'No, you're not entitled to your privacy because you married a famous person and you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilaria-baldwin/i-am-entitled-to-my-privacy-people-say-no-you-re-not-entitled-to-your/) [Hilaria Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilaria-baldwin/) > [Music for me is something I prefer to keep away form the whole business part of my life. I feel like everything I do,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milla-jovovich/music-for-me-is-something-i-prefer-to-keep-away-form-the-whole/) [Milla Jovovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milla-jovovich/) > [Personally, I think I pay a big price with my body, my time and with never being able to have privacy when I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicklas-bendtner/personally-i-think-i-pay-a-big-price-with-my-body-my-time-and-with/) [Nicklas Bendtner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicklas-bendtner/) ## More by Laura Poitras > [In all my work, I'm interested in understanding big issues through the lives of individuals...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/in-all-my-work-i-m-interested-in-understanding-big-issues-through-the/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [In terms of sources coming forward, I really reject this idea of talking about one, two, three sources. There are many sources that have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/in-terms-of-sources-coming-forward-i-really-reject-this-idea-of/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [Just consider the CIA and its effort to suppress the Senate's review of its torture program. Take in the fact that we live in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/just-consider-the-cia-and-its-effort-to-suppress-the-senate-s-review/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [I was in correspondence with an anonymous source for about five months and in the process of developing a dialogue you build ideas, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/i-was-in-correspondence-with-an-anonymous-source-for-about-five/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [Snowden has presented us with choices on how we want to move forward into the future. We're at a crossroads and we still don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/snowden-has-presented-us-with-choices-on-how-we-want-to-move-forward/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [In all my work, I'm interested in trying to understand the human consequences of government policies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/in-all-my-work-i-m-interested-in-trying-to-understand-the-human/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [We've already seen shifts happening in some of the big companies - Google, Apple - that now understand how vulnerable their customer data is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/we-ve-already-seen-shifts-happening-in-some-of-the-big-companies/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [I don't speak Arabic - I know a little to get by, but that's all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/i-don-t-speak-arabic-i-know-a-little-to-get-by-but-that-s-all/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [I think one of the most shocking things is how little our elected officials knew about what the NSA was doing. Congress is learning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/i-think-one-of-the-most-shocking-things-is-how-little-our-elected/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [We're definitely in an era where the government wants to keep more secrets and it wants to come after anyone who's exposing those secrets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/we-re-definitely-in-an-era-where-the-government-wants-to-keep-more/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [The free software community should be supported more widely. I’m totally in solidarity with what they do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/the-free-software-community-should-be-supported-more-widely-i-m/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [Certainly, when it comes to my profession as a journalist, that allows the government to trace what you're reporting, who you're talking to, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/certainly-when-it-comes-to-my-profession-as-a-journalist-that-allows/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [People are starting to understand that the devices we carry with us reveal our location, who we're talking to, and all kinds of other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/people-are-starting-to-understand-that-the-devices-we-carry-with-us/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [When the most important decisions are made in secret, we lose our ability to check the powers that control.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/when-the-most-important-decisions-are-made-in-secret-we-lose-our/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) > [I think it's radical to censor information because the government asks you to. That's radical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-poitras/i-think-it-s-radical-to-censor-information-because-the-government/) [Laura Poitras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) [Explore all 27 Laura Poitras quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-poitras/) ## More Activity quotes > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [It must be assumed and established as a principle, that the right of private property must be regarded as sacred. Wherefore, the law ought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-xiii/it-must-be-assumed-and-established-as-a-principle-that-the-right-of/) [Pope Leo XIII](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-xiii/) > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [And also I think the rise of other, you could say, destinations for international jihadis mean that Pakistan isn't necessarily the place where people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/and-also-i-think-the-rise-of-other-you-could-say-destinations-for/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [To evoke in oneself a feeling one has once experienced, and having evoked it in oneself, then by means of movements, lines, colors, sounds,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/to-evoke-in-oneself-a-feeling-one-has-once-experienced-and-having/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Fighting's fun, man. It's a great activity, it's a great sport.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-mitrione/fighting-s-fun-man-it-s-a-great-activity-it-s-a-great-sport/) [Matt Mitrione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-mitrione/) > [There were books everywhere in my house. Books were very present. I just loved books. I never understood reading as anything but a pleasurable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-lucas/there-were-books-everywhere-in-my-house-books-were-very-present-i/) [Lisa Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-lucas/) > [For war to man, like childbirth to women, is simplifying in its emotions and activities. All the real problems of life can be put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/for-war-to-man-like-childbirth-to-women-is-simplifying-in-its/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [The only activity a cynic will find contagious is yawning, that is, with other people, at other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/the-only-activity-a-cynic-will-find-contagious-is-yawning-that-is/) [Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/) > [For the longest time, neuroscientists were forced to be passive observers of brain activity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gero-miesenbock/for-the-longest-time-neuroscientists-were-forced-to-be-passive/) [Gero Miesenbock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gero-miesenbock/) > [Enjoyment is not a goal, it is a feeling that accompanies important ongoing activity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-goodman/enjoyment-is-not-a-goal-it-is-a-feeling-that-accompanies-important/) [Paul Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-goodman/) > [Once an activity has been socialized, it is impossible to point out, by concrete example, how men in a free market could better conduct…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-read/once-an-activity-has-been-socialized-it-is-impossible-to-point-out-by/) [Leonard Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-read/) > [“Fun is not an activity, it is a state of mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/fun-is-not-an-activity-it-is-a-state-of-mind/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [I have to consider everything I eat; I consider every activity I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-kimball/i-have-to-consider-everything-i-eat-i-consider-every-activity-i-do/) [Charlie Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-kimball/) > [Almost all good businesses engage in 'pain today, gain tomorrow' activities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/almost-all-good-businesses-engage-in-pain-today-gain-tomorrow/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) [Browse all 3,263 Activity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/activity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There are people who are always going to try to engage in activity that is illegal and they're going to try to subvert surveillance. 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