He served in the provinces from c. 89 to c. 93, either in command of a legion or in a civilian post. He and his property survived Domitian’s reign of terror (81–96), but the experience left him jaded and perhaps ashamed at his own complicity, instilling in him the hatred of tyranny evident in his works.
with Domitian it was the chief part of our miseries to see and to be seen, to know that our sighs were being recorded…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tacitus
Pre-Palantir surveillance state