History Īn early instance of this argument was referenced by Henry James in his 1888 novel, The Reverberator: An individual using this argument may claim that an average person should not worry about government surveillance, as they would have 'nothing to hide'. The nothing to hide argument states that individuals have no reason to fear or oppose surveillance programs, unless they are afraid it will uncover their own illicit activities. Argument that one does not need privacy unless they are doing something wrong
