We are Data

 Earlier in the week, I posted about how large companies use social media as a tool to help decide what people they want to hire. The Book written by John Cheney-Lippold, of the same name, extrapolates on the idea that corporations don't view us as people, but as statistics and numbers to market product towards. The reality is that we give these companies free range do sell and buy our user data in exchange for the free services of the internet. Our privacy is no longer ours alone. We are bombarded with market strategies. When normal advertisements no longer work, companies shift to having their products sold by popular "influencers" who can sell their product for them, and at the same time, reach wider audiences. They use the reputation and prey on the sense of "Authenticity" that users look for when deciding to buy a product. What we need to understand is that every facet of our time on social media is tracked. Its not simply what we "like" and don't "like". It measures everything. How long we scroll on our feed, if we re watch a reel several times, if we stop to read the comments, if we share posts with our friends. All of this information is captured and packaged. On the one hand the information is fed into a monstrous algorithm that feeds us more of the content we look for, and on the other, it sells our data to companies to further market their product. 

This does not even include what governments are able to do. While Internet privacy is a hot topic here in the United States, over seas in countries like China, it is very normal for citizens information to be regularly monitored and accessed by the government. Companies like Tik-Tok which have been identified as spyware by the United States Army, clearly state in their terms of service that not only does the Tik-Tok app record all of your user data, but it also records the type of phone you have, your operating system, your photos and files, what other applications you have on your phone. In essence, millions of people have willingly given all of their information to a foreign government, in exchange for cheap content. 

What's more interesting is that Tik-Tok in China is very different than Tik-Tok everywhere else. For starters, In China, the algorithm is designed to promote STEM fields like Math and science. It also promotes a celebration of Chinese culture and architecture. Everywhere else on the other hand, the Tik-Tok algorithm simply shows the same dumb dance trends and viral videos. Not to mention, the amount of misinformation that has been put onto the internet. Several years ago, it was an obvious fact that if you wanted to get the real news, you would watch reputable news networks. Now however the trust in the media has been broken, mostly due to political bipartisanship. Now most people ge their news from pod casts and 30 second clips that seldom tell the full story. Now media is filtered, cut and edited through the lens of whatever person, company, or organization that matches the agenda of that entity. 

To try and combat this, I made an active effort to subscribe to individuals who I don't personally agree with. rather then allow my social media feed to become an echo chamber of the same ideas. What I realized is that both sides of an issue heavily demonized the other, and how quickly it was to lose perspective. In a professional setting that also means that I refrain from posting anything political or controversial. Mainly because Social backlash is a major threat. Whether you fall on the left or right of the political spectrum, cancel culture is a very real thing, and people can lose their careers because of a simple tweet. 

The final question one might ask, is any of this ethical? well to put it simply, No it is not. However, to say that companies should provide and invest millions into a free product but respect our user privacy is wishful thinking at best. In the end, the devil is in the details.