Mailing address
124 Mt. Auburn Street Suite 190, Room 106
79 John F. Kennedy Street
Mailbox 117
Cambridge, MA, 02138
Vivek Mohan
Research Fellow, Science, Technology, and Public Policy Program/Information and Communications Technology and Public Policy Project
Contact:
Telephone: 617-495-1318
Email: vivek_mohan@hks.harvard.edu
Experience
Vivek Mohan is a Fellow in the Science, Technology and Public Policy Program's (STPP) Information and Communications Technology and Public Policy Project (ICTPP) at the Harvard Kennedy School's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Vivek's research and writing has spanned a broad range of topics that touch on the intersection of technology, law, and policy. Vivek writes on topics including privacy and surveillance, legislative reform for cybersecurity, net neutrality, ISP regulation, telecommunications and regulatory reform, and Internet governance. Vivek has a particular interest in how emerging technologies being brought to market in a variety of sectors—particularly financial services and healthcare—interact with existing laws and regulations.
Vivek's teaching, with professors from Harvard Law School and Harvard's School of Engineering and Applied Science, has focused on cybersecurity, privacy, and internet governance.
As part of his fellowship, Vivek is involved with ICTPP's Exploration in Cyber International Relations (ECIR) subproject, a joint Harvard-MIT research program funded by the Department of Defense's Project Minerva. Vivek works extensively with the Berkman Center for Internet and Society on a number of projects, including development of a cybersecurity wiki and course curriculum. Additionally, Vivek has advised the Federal Communication Commission's Open Internet Advisory Committee, which evaluates the efficacy of net neutrality regulations, on the issue of "specialized services."
Prior to joining the Belfer Center, Vivek worked as a Legal Fellow at Microsoft's Innovation & Policy Center in Washington, D.C., where his research and writing centered on telecommunications and cybersecurity policy. Vivek has also held appointments with the Internet Bureau of the New York State Office of the Attorney General. Vivek received his J.D. from Columbia Law School, where he served as an Articles Editor for the Columbia Science and Technology Law Review. Vivek received his B.A. in Economics magna cum laude from the University of California, Berkeley. Vivek enjoys skiing, stories by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, and will never turn down a glass of Brunello.
May 15, 2013
"Privacy Consciousness in the Big Data Era"
Op-Ed, Hive
By Vivek Mohan, Research Fellow, Science, Technology, and Public Policy Program/Information and Communications Technology and Public Policy Project
"...[S]ocietal inertia cannot be held up ipso facto to argue for stronger privacy protections when we ourselves are responsible for sharing the data that is now traversing the endless servers of cyberspace. The benefits of the big data revolution are myriad, cut across sectors, and the best is surely yet to come."
April 12, 2013
"Why the Government Matters: A Primer for Data-Minded Entrepreneurs"
Op-Ed, Hive
By Vivek Mohan, Research Fellow, Science, Technology, and Public Policy Program/Information and Communications Technology and Public Policy Project
"...[A]mong the informed public, fear of misuse of personal information is not limited to a wary eye towards cyber criminals — increasingly, concern has been voiced at the increasing power of the government in electronic surveillance."
October 2012
"Decrypting the Fifth Amendment: The Limits of Self-Incrimination"
Journal Article, University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law Heightened Scrutiny, volume 15
By Vivek Mohan, Research Fellow, Science, Technology, and Public Policy Program/Information and Communications Technology and Public Policy Project and John Villasenor
In "Decrypting the Fifth Amendment: The Limits of Self-Incrimination in the Digital Era," Vivek Mohan and John Villasenor examine the scope of information protected from compelled self-incriminating disclosure by exploring the boundaries of the contents of the mind. They propose a framework for bringing the foregone conclusion doctrine, which was articulated in 1976, into the digital era, and conclude that the question of what constitutes a "testimonial act" must be revisited to proactively ensure that emerging technologies do not eviscerate the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination.
February 2012
"Cloud and Mobile Privacy: The Electronic Communications Privacy Act"
Discussion Paper
By Vivek Mohan, Research Fellow, Science, Technology, and Public Policy Program/Information and Communications Technology and Public Policy Project
Consumer expectations of online and mobile privacy have in recent years diverged significantly from reality. In certain circumstances, the United States government has the ability to access a consumer's cloud-based email, location data gathered from their mobile phones, and information about what calls a user places on a mobile device—without a warrant. While a broad coalition is spearheading reform efforts in Washington, providers of these services should take proactive steps to bring consumer understanding of their privacy more in line with reality.
