If you are hoping that this book will be objective, you're going to be disappointed. This graphic novel talks about Edward Snowden and everything he revealed, and who has influence over who, and will generally scare the crap out of you.

'Verax: A Graphic History of Electronic Surveillance' by Pratap Chatterjee with illustrations by Khalil Bendib is a non-fiction graphic novel that talks about recent whistleblowing of government surveillance.

Verax was one of Edward Snowden's code names so it's an apt name for this graphic novel. The book mainly has to do with the things he revealed. Discussions of unwarranted surveillance as well as the inaccuracy of U.S. drone strikes are discussed. Interviews with key people are illustrated.

It's part of the same story, but I found the first half more interesting. Deep packet inspection as well as tracking what people do with Stingrays and data mining was a lot more interesting. The drone stuff is also good, but when it moved to that, it felt like the story I was more interested in got derailed. I realize that's how the story developed, so it's just my preference.

The art is a caricature style which gives most figures kind of a garish look. It wasn't my favorite, but it was easy to distinguish among all the individuals and to recognize the more famous ones.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Metropolitan Books, Henry Holt& Company, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.

Formatted review available at: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2133516508?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

This book made me want to delete all my online accounts and go completely off the grid. Okay, maybe not–I’m addicted to the convenience of the Internet and the comforts of modern life–but I can’t say I wasn’t warned!

Verax is graphic nonfiction that covers whistleblowers, drone warfare, and mass surveillance in the post-9/11 era, with a focus on events during the Obama administration. Journalist Pratap Chatterjee was already investigating software contractors and the big business of spying technology, but the story becomes personal for him after he travels to Pakistan and meets with relatives of drone victims. Just three days later, one of the soccer-loving teenagers he spoke with was killed in a drone strike. Throughout the book, Chatterjee seeks to track down connections between the NSA's mass surveillance program and drone killings. If you've ever followed any of the news on mass surveillance, you'll recognize many of the people featured: Julian Assange, Edward Snowden, Laura Poitras, and Glenn Greenwald. "Verax" is the Latin word for "truth teller" and was one of Snowden's code names.

The methods the intelligence agencies use to gather information and how that information is used is reported in a concise and accessible way. How do they sort and draw conclusions from the mass quantities of information they collect? How accurate are their results? According to Chatterjee, not well and not very. People are broken down into a bundle of traits that are used to predict terroristic threats; there can be an awfully thin line between a terrorist and an ordinary civilian. Rather than listening to the content of every call, they collect and analyze the "metadata," the who/what/when of the communications.  Their analysis software can answer questions as broad as "My target speaks German but is in Pakistan. How can I find him?" in a method similar to how Google returns search results. A common dismissal of mass surveillance concerns is that there's nothing to worry about if you have nothing to hide, but Chatterjee shows how easy it is to draw the wrong conclusions from the data. We've also seen repeatedly throughout history that a motivated authoritarian can use the most insignificant details to ensnare potential political enemies. Western spying technology has been sold to repressive regimes and leaders in Syria and Egypt have used it to quash dissent.

One of the most enlightening sections was the part about drone warfare and how targets are chosen. The Obama Administration claimed the drones strikes occur with "surgical precision," but just how reliable is the targeting? It can be really easy to draw the wrong conclusions from half a world away. A single Predator drone is operated by over a hundred people located all over the world. These people have to analyze mountains of data and an unfamiliar culture, while also dealing with unclear images and occasionally inaccurate information. Even something as seemingly insignificant as a wrong digit in a phone number can lead to a faulty identification and a wrongful death. Chatterjee investigates the effects of drone warfare on the drone operators who work thousands of miles away from the combat zone and meets with drone pilots who suffer from PTSD.

It's difficult to pinpoint exact numbers of innocent civilians killed in drone strikes, but as of 12/12/2017, the Bureau of Investigative Journalism estimates that 7% to 22% of the 7,207-10,511 killed in 4701 confirmed strikes across Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, and Yemen were civilians. Several situations in which the wrong people were killed are highlighted, including the story of two US marines who were killed in a friendly-fire drone attack. In Chapter 13, there's an intense depiction of the conversation preceding a drone strike where twenty-three Afghan civilians were killed after they were wrongly identified as enemy combatants. This book focuses on the criticisms of drone warfare, but are also many who support the drone program as it stands. The supporters say that drones are more accurate than other methods, that there will always be "collateral damage" in a war, and that it saves US soldiers' lives. (Related article: Drones: Actually the Most Humane Form of Warfare Ever by former Navy pilot Michael W. Lewis)

LIKES: 

• The graphic format: Mass surveillance programs are a complicated, sleep-inducing topic for the average person. As one of Chatterjee's editors says in the beginning, "software contractors are not sexy!" The graphic format makes it easier to process new an complex information. It also allows the author to avoid boring the reader with giant walls of techy text! Chatterjee does a good job of comparing the more complex concepts to things the average person will be familiar with.

• It shows what happens whistleblowers who've went the legal route and why some people have chosen to go outside the bounds of the law.

• It discusses the problems and potential consequences of mass surveillance and drone warfare.

DISLIKES: 

• It's just as much about chasing down the story as it is about mass surveillance. Journalists investigating government overreach face obstacles while researching, even in "free" countries. Citizens, and consequently editors, are disinterested in the story despite its far-reaching implications for us all. However, I was more interested in the the last third of the book than the details of chasing down the story. I enjoyed the book much more after "Chapter Ten," when the focus shifts to the methods of mass surveillance and details of drone warfare.

• Too much Edward Snowden! I've heard the Snowden story a million times at this point, so dedicating almost a quarter of the book to him–from information theft to fleeing to Russia–was excessive. He's a big part of why we are even talking about all of this to begin with, but I was more interested in the details of what Snowden released than Snowden himself. I think it was a mistake to focus on him so much, because the controversy surrounding the whistleblowers tends to completely eclipse any conversation about mass surveillance. Right or wrong, the information is out there now.

Verax is a critical look at mass surveillance and drone warfare that raises issues that are important for everyone to consider. Are we being true to our values? Can we do better? How much privacy are you willing to give up for security? Has mass surveillance foiled any terrorist plots or is it actually creating more terrorists? Are we trading innocent peoples' lives for the illusion of safety while simultaneously making ourselves less safe in reality? Has government dependence on mass surveillance simply caused terrorists to change their tactics? In a book I just read about far-right groups, it's mentioned that terrorist groups have shifted more towards lone wolf attacks because it's easier to remain undetected. (Related: Chart on page 6). Verax also addresses some overarching principles, such as the dangers that come with tribal loyalties. Too often people are in favor of expansive powers when their own political party is in charge, forgetting that those same powers will still apply when the opposing party or an unsavory leader is in power.  It's important to look beyond party loyalty to the flaws and potential consequences of our decisions. Our leaders should never be able to take our approval for granted. It's also necessary to periodically reassess our opinions when there's hard data about the effectiveness and the consequences. There were sections of this book that I thought could be more concise, but overall it's accessible introduction to the topic.

Beautiful artwork which in itself earned it two stars. However, the topic and story line was far too much for a graphic novel. It was very out of place and the plot was very confusing. The writing was really poor and all over the place.

The author definitely has an agenda here - everyone is watching you - governments, corporations, and other individuals. A little paranoid in nature, but thought-provoking. Well illustrated.

I'll probably be put on a watch list just for leaving this review. The story of electronic surveillance in the 21st century. The author deep dives into Edward Snowden's whistleblowing and the U.S. drone program. Chatterjee was smart to present this in a graphic novel format. The information within is very dense and the graphic format makes it easier to digest. The info is very interesting but one sided.

A great graphic novel with a lot of important information.

Remember how shocked those of us in the United States were when Edward Snowden released the information about what the NSA was up to.

And here were are, years later, letting devices into our homes that are monitoring our every move, and paying for the pleasure.

Facisnating book about surveillance and how drones are not the way they are shown on TV or movies, that are not that good at sporting who or what they are shooting on, and afar too many innocent lives have been lost because of that.

Illustrated by the guy who wrote Zahra's Parasidse, the story is very easy to follow, and I am amazed at how far we have come, and how dulled we are to all the electronic surveillance that is still gong on.

Fascinating read. Highly recommend it.

Thanks I to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

The art in this volume was stunning. And, overall, this was a detailed and informative memoir and non-fiction primer of the issues of technology and privacy and security. However, so much has been previously published about wikileaks and Edward Snowden and this volume doesn't add a great deal to that information that I would not recommend it unless this was a first look at the topic.