So, this is insidious in one particular way: It doesn't actually help do any sort of immediate surveillance (right now, anyways, thank god). But, it does mean

So, this is insidious in one particular way: It doesn't actually help do any sort of immediate surveillance (right now, anyways, thank god). But, it does mean that any gathering of people with phones out is potentially spying. This specifically is excellent discouragement against perhaps the biggest threat the establishment faces today: peaceful gathering and protests. This is (intentionally or not) targeted almost perfectly at Millenials and more tech-savvy folks, because those are the ones who'll recognize the threat most clearly.