Unfortunately, George Orwell’s iconic novel 1984 is no longer fiction. Thanks to the infamous Snowden leaks that exposed the NSA’s sweeping surveillance programs, we now have concrete proof that Big Brother is, in a very real sense, watching our every move.
In fact, it’s even worse than Orwell imagined. The cellphones that most of us carry around in our pockets are basically telescreens on steroids — transmitting not only our location data, but also who our friends are, who we talk to, the contents of our emails and text messages, and all the apps and services we’re using at any given moment. Unless you’re proactive about concealing your data, your personal privacy is an illusion.
So, to help you fight back and keep your location and communication data hidden from prying eyes, UK fashion startup The Affair has created a line of 1984-inspired clothing. The capsule collection of shirts, jackets, and pants combines the workwear aesthetic of Orwell’s prophetic novel with a proprietary system of signal-concealing pouches. This “UnPocket”, as they call it, is lined with a special metallic fabric that securely blocks cellular, Wi-Fi, GPS, and RFID signals, so when you pop you phone inside of it, you effectively drop off the grid and become “both untrackable and unhackable.”
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Truth be told, this isn’t the first time somebody’s made a signal-blocking pouch for your electronics, or even an anti-surveillance clothing line (see: OFF Pocket and Stealth Hoodie), but it’s noteworthy for the mere fact that it combines both ideas into a sharp-looking fashion collection. The UnPocket is designed to me modular, so it can be snapped in or out of each garment as you please.
To raise the necessary funds needed for production, The Affair has turned to the crowdfunding community on Kickstarter, and is currently just a few thousand shy of its £25,000 goal. So if you’re ready to join Winston Smith and rebel against the all-seeing overlords that watch your every move, you can lock down an UnPocket for a pledge of just $29 (£18). The clothes start at $98 (£59), and as with most crowdfunding projects, those prices are expected to jump when they go retail. Find out more here.
