David Lyon

Dr. Lyon, a Professor of sociology at Queen’s University, is a leading figure in the new field of surveillance studies. This multi-disciplinary research involves trying to understand how and why details about ordinary people in everyday life are increasingly sought after by organizations and what are the consequences of this. He became interested in this when studying the growth of the so-called information society in the 1980s and now sees the questions raised as central to social justice and citizenship as well as to familiar areas such as privacy.

Currently researching the expansion of national ID card systems round the world, Lyon is also involved in several international research networks concerned with surveillance, in the global south as well as in North America and Europe. His work connects him with information commissioners and civil liberties groups, and also with activists, film-makers, ethicists, and students.

The author and editor of more than 25 books that have been translated into 17 languages, Lyon's writing ranges from surveillance studies through social theory to the sociology of religion. The most recent are Identifying Citizens: ID Cards as Surveillance (2009) and Playing the Identity Card (co-edited with Colin J. Bennett, 2008). His work has been recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Sociological Association Communication and Information Technology section (2007) and he was elected to a Fellowship of the Royal Society of Canada in 2008.