The electronic age compels us to confront the delicate balance between the convenience of constant connectivity and the protection of personal privacy, security, and democracy itself. Presented as a two-fold concern of digital and civic literacy, surveillance and privacy expert Heidi Boghosian argues that our fight to uphold democracy must extend to the online world.

As “smart” citizens, our best chance of thriving in the digital era lies in taking care of our “smart” selves as diligently as we maintain our smart devices. In the same way that smart devices can disclose private information when not adequately secured, our online presence can lead to unintentional data exposure or identity theft. That entails a commitment to learning digital literacy and cyber hygiene from the first moment we engage with technology. Mastering the fundamentals of civics—the rights and responsibilities of citizens—rounds out the democratic assignment. With AI and machine learning poised to play a transformative role in our 21st-century lives, we, as humans, have our own generative learning journey to master.

Drawing parallels between Americans and their “smart” devices, Cyber Citizens sheds light on the delicate balance between connectivity and privacy to uphold a truly democratic society.