I guess my smartphone is ok
… but
There's also this factor.
Whenever I use it to surf the web or upload anything, I can’t help but consider what I might be sharing, and with whom.
The phrase “Big Brother is Watching You” has been used so much that it’s nearly lost its meaning. Yet the concept remains relevant, more so in this era than ever before.
Today’s corporations are as powerful as nation states, and sometimes even more so. The scope of their power makes governments look insignificant.
1984 came and went, and we breathed a sigh of relief when our televisions didn’t yet watch us.
Now, corporations have made it rewarding for us to invite them into our homes, friendships, love lives and careers. They’ve given us fancy new gadgets to play with, amusing new applications to use. And while we play, companies like Google and Facebook collect our data, “personalize” our web experiences, and occasionally disseminate information about us without our permission.
Our peers expect us to embrace the new culture these technologies have spawned. To lay our lives bare for the world. Smart phones allow our favorite brands to travel with us with us everywhere we go. We can access the web on all our mobile devices, and broadcast our locations to the whole planet.
Often, we’re not all that concerned about to whom we’re broadcasting. In any case, we’re willing to give up a lot of our privacy for the “convenience” of using the latest technologies. After all, it’s just a status update.
I can’t possibly be the only one in the world who finds this somewhat unnerving. Feel free to share the image I’ve created! Only please link back here when you do so.
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