Civic Hygiene – avoid building technologies that could be used by a police state

# Summary Security expert Bruce Schneier's concept of "civic hygiene" warns against building surveillance technologies that could be misused by future authoritarian governments, even if current administrations seem trustworthy. The article argues that while some databases (like vehicle ownership) have legitimate purposes and limited abuse potential, others (such as recording sexuality or religious beliefs) create dangerous vulnerabilities that could enable a malicious government to persecute vulnerable populations. Rather than assuming governments will remain benevolent, we should design systems that cannot easily be weaponized against citizens.