Electronic Communication Interception Technologies and Issues of Power

In cyberspace, data flows transit massively and freely on a planetary scale. The generalization of encryption, made necessary by the need to protect these exchanges, has resulted in states and their intelligence services forgoing listening and interception missions. The latter have had to find ways to break or circumvent this protection.

This book analyzes the evolution of the means of communication and interception, as well as their implementation since the advent of the telegraph in the 19th century. It presents this sensitive subject from a technical, historical and political perspective, and answers several questions: who are the actors of interception? Who has produced the recent technologies? How are the markets for interception means organized? Are the means of protecting communications infallible? Or what forms of power do interceptions confer?

Daniel Ventre has a PhD in political science and is a researcher at CESDIP Laboratory (CNRS, Paris-Saclay University, France). His research focuses on cybersecurity, cybercrime and cyber defense.

Philippe Guillot has a PhD in computer science and taught cryptology and its history at the University of Paris 8, France. He is also a member of the ARCSI.