Technology such as encryption, VPNs, and Tor can help us maintain and defend our privacy online.
But
technology can also work in the opposite direction, helping the spooks
learn about our private lives and behavior, which makes it difficult for
individuals to develop personalities freely from fear and control.
But which technologies should we be afraid about most, and why? And what can help us protect ourselves from these trends?
1. Facial recognition systems
There
are already cameras everywhere, and while it’s undeniably entertaining
to watch bloopers from everyday life on youtube, it is creepy to know
everything we do in public life is potentially made available to the
world to consume.
With advanced technology, it will soon be possible
to not only record all our public life but also analyze it in almost
real time. While facial recognition is far from perfect, it already
allows a computer to match a person even if glasses or hats obscure
parts of their face.
Quite likely, facial recognition software will
become more accurate than humans—especially when scaled to databases the
size of a city’s voters registry, national passports, or even that of
Facebook.
With advanced face recognition software, a state might be
able to find out with high accuracy where a person is at all times, who
they are with, and what they are currently doing.
It’s pretty hard to
protect against facial recognition. The most effective tools stand out
considerably to the human eye, and they only really work if a large
number of people use them. If only a few people use tricks to deceive
cameras, it will be quite easy to work out who they are.
For now,
items that fool the cameras are mainly a sign of (much needed) protest
and objection to the automatization of the police state.
2. Ride-sharing apps
Your
car is your property, and there are limits to what governments can do
with it. They cannot deny you access to it, seize it, or search it
without good reason.
In your car, you also decide where to go, and what hardware and software to install.
However,
when you rent a car or hop into somebody’s rideshare, you are not
protected by these same provisions. On top of that, the app you use to
hail the ride knows where you are at all times and will record this
data.
The app even knows where you are going before you get there
and, in some cases, can even predict your commuting behavior (this risk
is also endemic to navigation systems). All of this data is available to
advertisers and governments.
At present, it’s still relatively easy
to avoid ride-sharing if your hometown has decent public transportation
or you can afford a car.
3. Electronic money
Carrying change in
our pockets is inconvenient. Finding an ATM nearby can cost money and
take time. Most of us have access to electronic payment methods like
credit cards, Google Pay, Wechat Pay or Venmo.
But relying on these
systems can be dangerous. Not only are all your transactions analyzed
and sold to advertisers, but they are also available to your government.
Tourists crossing the U.S. border from the north can be refused entry,
and possibly even face jail time, because they purchased marijuana
legally in Canada.
Electronic money can not only be used to surveil
and prosecute you, but also to deny you access to services only
available with credit cards, such as online purchases or card-only
shops.
If we do end up eradicating cash, as we already have for
expensive goods, we are making it easy to marginalize people without
access further.
To avoid government snooping, use cash as much as you can, and Bitcoin whenever you shop online.
4. Predictive policing
Predictive policing has inspired many science fiction stories, most famously Philip K Dick’s The Minority Report.
Unlike
in The Minority Report, we cannot rely on psychic mutants to see future
crime, but instead, we have to rely on existing crime databases, most
of which carry a fair amount of prejudice and bias.
Predictive
policing amplifies this bias, meaning some crime goes less punished,
while citizens in crime-ridden areas are inconvenienced through
concentrated law enforcement action, similar to that of racial profiling
at airports.
It may seem far-fetched, but predictive policing is
already in trial stage at multiple locations around the world—most
notably through U.S. military contractor Palantir in New Orleans.
All of the above is why we should all demand ethical technology
It
is the responsibility of all of us to use and further ethical
technology while rejecting technology that can be used against us.
Wear
face covers where you can, even if it is just as a protest. Make use of
your own car or even better, public transportation, and pay with cash
and Bitcoin wherever possible.
Be vigilant against attempts in your
community against any policies that endanger the equality of all and the
erosion of your rights.
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