There isn't one single country with the absolute least surveillance, but countries consistently ranked highest for privacy and freedom, indicating lower surveillance, include Iceland, Switzerland, New Zealand, Norway, and Ireland, due to strong data protection laws, constitutional rights, and high internet freedom, while countries like China are noted for extensive surveillance.
The best countries for online privacy: an investigation (x-post r/privacy)
Freedom House Index: countries with the highest internet freedom 2025. In 2025, Iceland was the worldwide leader in terms of internet freedom. The country ranked first with 94 index points in the Freedom House Index, where each country received a numerical score from 100 (the freest) to 0 (the least free).
China maintains the largest and most sophisticated mass surveillance system in the world. It is primarily conducted through the government, although corporate surveillance in connection with the CCP and Chinese government also has been reported.
Iceland consistently ranks as the country with the lowest crime rate and highest level of peacefulness, leading the Global Peace Index for many years due to its strong community, low gun violence (police don't carry guns), and high social welfare, followed by other small, stable European nations like Ireland, Austria, New Zealand, and Switzerland.
Iceland remains the most peaceful country in 2022, a position it has held since 2008. It is joined at the top of the index by New Zealand, Ireland, Denmark and Austria.
According to the latest 2025 CEOWORLD Health Care Index, Taiwan once again ranks as the country with the best healthcare in the world, maintaining its top position with an overall score of 78.72. South Korea (77.7) and Australia (74.11) remain in second and third place, respectively.
China. China leads the world with over 200 million CCTV cameras. Its extensive surveillance network covers cities, streets, and public spaces.
The 10 most surveilled cities in the world
Additionally, Japan has a vast network of security cameras pretty much everywhere. There are very few stretches of the country which are not monitored by a camera that the government has access to. Internet traffic is monitored by ISPs without any expectation of privacy.
As it has been since 2019, Switzerland was the freest country in the world, followed by New Zealand (2nd), Denmark (3rd), Luxembourg (4th), Ireland (5th), Finland (6th), Australia, Iceland and Sweden (tied at 7th), and Estonia. Canada was in 11th place and the United States and United Kingdom were tied at 17th.
Internet access is highly restricted in countries under Communist Party rule-North Korea, Vietnam, China, and Cuba.
The countries that took the top 10 places, in order, were Switzerland, New Zealand, Denmark, Ireland, Estonia and Sweden (tied at 5), Iceland, Luxembourg, Finland, and Norway.
The good news is that there is almost no way to track live, encrypted VPN traffic. Law enforcement can only obtain data, if available, about websites visited and so on. Otherwise, hackers and snooping government agencies are generally blocked by the fact that the data is encrypted.
New APP 2 – anonymity and pseudonymity
New APP 2 creates a general right to anonymity or pseudonymity for individuals when dealing with agencies: 2.1 Individuals must have the option of not identifying themselves, or of using a pseudonym, when dealing with an APP entity in relation to a particular matter.
China maintains the largest and most sophisticated mass surveillance system in the world. It is primarily conducted through the government, although corporate surveillance in connection with the CCP and Chinese government also has been reported.
This includes the city with the least amount of CCTV cameras watching its residents and visitors: Reykjavik, Iceland. Reykjavik is home to just 40 surveillance cameras in it's 106 square miles. Nairobi, Kenya has a similarly small number of surveillance cameras.
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), USA
This is the Civilian Foreign Intelligence Service of the Federal Government of the USA. Motto: Gathering, processing, and analyzing national security information from around the world, primarily using human intelligence.
What security systems do rich people use? Wealthy homeowners often opt for extensively customized systems from top providers like Vivint, ADT, and Frontpoint. Components get tailored to specifically suit their property's layout and protection needs.
Introduction. In the 2024 World Index of Health Innovation, Australia secured the 9th position overall, a decline from 5th place in 2022. This ranking highlights Australia's strengths in Quality and Choice, where it stands 6th and 3rd respectively.
The best doctors in the world are often found in countries with top-ranked healthcare systems and medical education. These include the United States, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, and the United Kingdom.
Top 10 Best Countries to Live in 2025