Summary: On September 11, terrorists attacked more than the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and rural Pennsylvania. They also attacked American ideologies and the sense of security built over centuries. Before these tragedies occurred, Americans saw themselves as individuals and cherished the remnants of their individual lives that technology had not stolen from them. Today, Americans are coming together to mourn and, in doing so, changing their views on the individual and the balance between privacy and security. This article examines how America has changed its position in the privacy debate. The target of the 9/11 hijackers was not the World Trade Center, nor the Pentagon or the White House. The intent of the attacks was much more than killing innocent Americans and destroying billions in property. Rather, it was an attack on symbolic monuments of American culture: pride, security, stability, democracy and prosperity. When the terrorists struck on September 11, their goals were to transform American society, proud of its continued struggle for civil liberties, to one where the population is willing to sacrifice those same ideals and freedoms to create a thin veil of security and, in this respect, the terrorists succeeded. The definition of "terrorism", according to Webster's dictionary, is "the systematic use of violence as a means to intimidate or coerce societies or governments"[1]. The September 11 attacks meet this definition of terrorism. The attacks aimed to radically change Americans' view of security and, beyond that, their sense of freedom. Later evidence suggests the attacks were successful in reaching middle of paper......fs reassessed. " Ariana Eunjung Cha and Jonathan Krim. Washington Post. September 13, 2001. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A21207-2001Sep12.html[5] "Newsweek Poll: Bush Soars." Newsweek Special on MSNBC.com September 15, 2001 http://www.msnbc.com/news/629455.asp[6] “Living under an electronic eye.” Lisa Guernsey, September 27, 2001.[7] ." CNET Special on MSNBC.com, September 18, 2001 http://www.msnbc.com/news/630646.asp[8] "Terrorism threat shifts priorities in online rights debate." Stephanie Olsen and Evan Hansen, September 17, 2001. http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-201-7149229-0.html[9] “Sending the ghosts online” Katharine Mieszkowski Salon.com 14 September 2001. http://www.salon. com/tech/feature/2001/09/14/privacy/index.html