Informers Are Our Eyes, They Are Our Ears: Citizen Participation in Soviet Political Policing - Sophia Kalashnikova Horowitz

This research examines Soviet-era informer networks, showing how ordinary citizens, often acting out of loyalty rather than malice, contributed to surveillance systems. The shift from formal informers to “trusted persons” sustained state monitoring. The study highlights parallels with modern digital surveillance, where individuals unknowingly share data with potentially unknown consequences.