I think the downvotes come from the friction of the language used and the lack of sources to back the claim. If you linked some stories, it would add some weight to the statement.
How many people on this site are unaware of the extent to which we are monitored? And openly? We have an entire agency whose primary task is to mass surveil.
It was big news for a little bit, and then the media by design quickly forgot about it barely a year later, and that is why history is doomed to repeat.