This story by Derechos Digitales originally appeared on Global Voices on June 27, 2026. In Latin America, surveillance is rarely presented as what it is. More often than not, it is set into motion on the premise of other promises: safety, efficiency, and order. It thus colonizes increasingly quotidian spaces until it no longer seems strange to us. Before, when a facial recognition camera seized our attention, we even questioned it. Today, it is part and parcel of public transport, mass events, and football stadiums. The advance of these technologies is not occurring as an exception or temporary measure. They are established silently and often without public debate, transparency, or people truly knowing what data is being recorded, who is storing it, or how it can be used later. At best, it is hidden behind individual consent. At worst, it is assumed to be what the people need. In May 2024, over 1.5 million people gathered on Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach for a free concert by Madonna. It was a night of celebration, but also one marked by large-scale surveillance, as thousands of agents, drones, and facial recognition cameras were deployed in the name of safety. Derechos Digitales documented the incident and included it in a report for the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights’ Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression. The concert surveillance was not limited solely to physical space. According to a media report from Brazil, the Rio de Janeiro Military Police also intensified its social media monitoring as part of its strategy for the event. The so-called “cyber patrol” was conducted without a clear legal framework that established any specific limits, controls, or supervision mechanisms. The crowd was not just observed by cameras at the beach; their online posts, comments, and other interactions were also tracked. This