Exposed: how our data is airing society’s dirty laundry

The digital Machiavellian deal we can’t seem to reverse

“Arguing that you don’t care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don’t care about free speech because you have nothing to say.” — Edward Snowden.

With the concerning track record of various corporations in exploiting access to our personal data, there has been a significant breach of trust affecting our collective well-being. Numerous companies have stealthily obtained excessive permissions and control, under the guise of enhancing user experience through personalization. Yet, as the saying goes, they have ultimately ‘put us on blast.’ I am, to put it bluntly, exhausted and feeling exploited.

I vividly recall a particular instance in 2009 when Facebook prompted me to disclose which high school I attended. At the time, this felt like an overreach — unnecessary and intrusive. Why did they need this information? In my 2011 book, I criticized such practices as emblematic of a fundamentally flawed approach to platform design — one that prioritizes connectivity over genuine relationships.