Technology changes expectation of privacy. Any neighbor can:
* Mount a laser pointed at your window and do complex algorithms with diffraction to listen to you
* Run Tempest and read your computer monitor (pretend we still have CRTs)
* Use a telephoto camera to look through your windows
... and so on.
Those were impossible 100 years ago, were expensive a few decades ago (outside of the means of my neighbors), are within the means of many individuals today, and will probably be very cheap in a few more decades years. That makes a world of difference.
I don't think my neighbor should be allowed to do any of those. I'd like my privacy.
All of those would be considered an invasion of your privacy. The general rule of thumb is that you have no expectation of privacy for anything that is done on your yard but outside your house, but within the walls, you do have an expectation of privacy. Technology that allows people to peep on you from outside your house doesn't change that, anymore than the introduction of windows to a house didn't change the expectation of privacy.
"Mount a laser pointed at your window and do complex algorithms with diffraction to listen to you"
No, not legally. Most states have two-party recording laws, laws about recording on private property, etc.
"Use a telephoto camera to look through your windows"
No, not legally. That falls under what is generally termed peeping Tom laws. It varies slightly by state, but you cannot record people in a private setting without permission. You can view the outside of a home from a public space, and even the inside if just with the naked eye.
"Run Tempest and read your computer monitor (pretend we still have CRTs)"
This one is interesting. Side-channel attacks are difficult to find case law about since they tend to be relatively new and involve other steps that are already criminal.
> No, not legally. Most states have two-party recording laws, laws about recording on private property, etc.
In my state: Record? No. Listen? Yes.
> No, not legally. That falls under what is generally termed peeping Tom laws
In my state: Per statute, requires intent of voyeurism. There is some case law which suggests otherwise, based on a broad general right to privacy. It's very case-specific.
And I say peeping Tom laws, but some of the laws related there do not require it to be an intimate act. Some, like "prowling" laws make it a crime to be close to someone's house at night.
* Mount a laser pointed at your window and do complex algorithms with diffraction to listen to you
* Run Tempest and read your computer monitor (pretend we still have CRTs)
* Use a telephoto camera to look through your windows
... and so on.
Those were impossible 100 years ago, were expensive a few decades ago (outside of the means of my neighbors), are within the means of many individuals today, and will probably be very cheap in a few more decades years. That makes a world of difference.
I don't think my neighbor should be allowed to do any of those. I'd like my privacy.