Recent advances in computer technology have made it increasingly easy for business
firms, government agencies, and even criminals to 20 and store information about
everything from our buying habits to our Web-surfing patterns. In public places, at work, and
on the Internet, surveillance devices now 21 our every move, be it a keystroke or an ATM
withdrawal. At the same time that these innovations have increased others’ power to 2211
our behavior, they have raised fears that they might be used for undemocratic purposes. New
technologies, 23 , threaten both our privacy and our freedom from censorship.
Legislation 24 the surveillance of electronic communications has not always upheld
citizens’ right to privacy. In 2001, one month after the terrorist attacks of September 11, U.S.
Congress passed the USA Patriot Act, which relaxed existing legal checks on surveillance by
law 25 officers. U.S. federal agencies are now freer to gather data electronically.
【題組】24. (A) regards (B) regardless (C) regarded (D) regarding