Confidentiality and Its discontents: Dilemmas of Privacy in Psychotherapy. By Paul W. Mosher and Jeffrey Berman. New York:  Fordham University Press, 2015,  xiii+343 pp.

Confidentiality and Its Discontents is an enormously engaging book on a very important topic. Who among us is not aware of the incursions into our privacy (invited and uninvited) that characterize modern life? Do any of us experience the privilege of confidentiality, and if so, where?

We offer many details of our personal lives up for public consumption through our various electronic transactions: via Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and other tempting social media outlets. Every time we make a purchase online, some advertising or marketing logarithm has noted our lifestyle choices and preferences and will feed them, relentlessly, back to us.

Even our e-mail accounts may be accessed by the servers we use. Presumably, my entire e-mail history on Gmail could be called up and viewed by my employer, the University of Minnesota. Google already “scans” our messages for the purpose of identifying consumer preferences and tailoring their advertising to us. I signed over my rights so long ago, that I no longer remember what I agreed to. I trust that I am small fry, have done nothing illegal, and am too boring for anyone's focused attention. But how do I know?

And what about Edward Snowden's revelations about the extent of the surveillance by the United States of its own citizens under the terms of the Patriot Act? Not to mention the surveillance cameras in public places that we live with as a means of protecting ourselves from criminal (and/or terrorist) activity? We are so used to being “watched,” we hardly notice it. And let us not forget those who actively seek the public eye, such as Hollywood stars or celebrity figures like the Kardashians. When Hulk Hogan sued Gawker for posting a sex tape, he won his suit, bankrupting Gawker in the process, but he could not “call back” the tape, which had already been released into cyberspace. Does this affect me personally? Not really.

But when Russian hackers barge into e-mail accounts of U.S. citizens with the intention of “mess