Judith Wagner DeCew, In Pursuit of Privacy (1997)
A concise and intelligent philosophical discussion of privacy. Includes a good overview of other philosophical accounts of privacy.
Mark A. Rothstein (editor), Genetic Secrets (1997)
A good set of essays by an interdisciplinary group of scholars on genetic privacy.
Philippe Aries, editor, History of Private Life: Vols. 1-5 (1997-1994)
The best intellectual history of privacy, from ancient to modern times. Although the series spans five volumes, it is highly readable and contains numerous illustrations of art and historical artifacts.
Philip Agre & Marc Rotenberg, editors, Technology and Privacy: The New Landscape (1998)
A terrific compilation of essays about privacy and technology.
Amitai Etzioni, The Limits of Privacy (1999)
Etzioni applies his communitarian theory to privacy, producing a provocative discussion about when privacy rights should yield to societal interests.
Whitfield Diffie & Susan Landau, Privacy on the Line: The Politics of Wiretapping and Encryption (1999)
A thorough and thought-provoking discussion of wiretapping and electronic surveillance. Terrific coverage of the historical, technological, and legal dimensions.
Robert Ellis Smith, Ben Franklin’s Web Site: Privacy and Curiosity from Plymouth Rock to the Internet (2004)
A superb history of privacy law, filled with fascinating stories and details. Very readable and very informative.
Jeffrey Rosen, The Unwanted Gaze: The Destruction of Privacy in America (2000)
A very interesting and highly readable discussion of privacy.
Simson Garfinkel, Database Nation : The Death of Privacy in the 21st Century (2001)
Describes with great detail a litany of new technologies that are posing problems for privacy.
John Gilliom, Overseers of the Poor : Surveillance, Resistance, and the Limits of Privacy (2001)
A fascinating account of the way that the welfare system exerts bureaucratic control over people’s lives and how people experience the limits the system imposes on their privacy.