Unveiling Surveillance Capitalism: Its Rise and Impending Downfall

In the digital landscape, hearing or even using the phrase “our devices are listening” has become increasingly common. For instance, a conversation leads to product, service, or website recommendations. Moments later, you might check your feed and notice an ad related to your previous conversation. Another is when you’re thinking of buying an item, and lo and behold, that item appears while you scroll through your account. Does your device indeed listen in on you?

Mobile devices don’t listen in the literal sense. The apps or websites from major corporations you use daily “listen” by processing your online activities such as internet usage, search history, previous purchases, liked profiles and pages, and favorite websites. In turn, they sell these pieces of information for other corporations to identify and influence online and consumer behaviors to instigate purchase decisions. 

But how much of one’s personal information do these corporations possess and use to manipulate decisions? Does personalized content come at the cost of one’s privacy? The phenomenon of surveillance capitalism is complex, and understanding its implications on everyday life could lead to solutions to safeguard one’s privacy and identity.

What Is Surveillance Capitalism?

The concept of surveillance capitalism was popularized by Shoshana Zuboff, a Professor Emerita of Harvard Business School. In her book titled “The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power,” Zubolf defined surveillance capitalism as a business model of data economy where data is collected, sold, and used by a network of businesses, institutions, and individuals for economic gain. 

Nowadays, public and private information is readily available to businesses because of the nature of the Internet. Online activities, even personal and sensitive information, are within reach with the click of a button. Due to the freedoms users grant to Big Tech corporations, businesses can manipulate the data to use it for constructive purposes like enhancing their services, or use it for profit by selling the data to other companies primarily for targeted online advertising and marketing. 

Meta and Its Ongoing Data Privacy Battles

Data commodification is the situation that Meta is currently facing. Recently, the European Union (EU) challenged surveillance capitalism through a directive aimed at Meta. The EU issued a $1.3 billion privacy fine against the transfer of personal information of Europeans to the US. If they do not pay the fine, the only way that the social media company can address this is to complete a complex revamp of its operations, including deleting all its European data.

On July 4, 2023, Meta also lost against the German antitrust agency on the issue of the latter’s authority to use its antitrust power in addressing data protection concerns. While the antitrust agency can now investigate privacy breaches, close coordination with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is required to mitigate the potential misuse of antitrust laws. 

Meta, however, maintains that rather than a complete overhaul, a new way to legitimize data processing is needed. This stance is met with skepticism, with privacy advocate Max Schrems labeling it “PR nonsense” – a way to sidestep acknowledging the limitations of its model.

Yet, as a result of all the privacy issues that Facebook faced, Meta resolved to pay a $725 million privacy settlement that users can apply for a share until August 25, 2023. Nearly all American Facebook users who had accounts between May 24, 2007, and December 22, 2022, are covered by the settlement. 

Domination of Surveillance Capitalism in Africa

In the era of digitalization, the real power now lies in the realm of surveillance capitalism, surpassing traditional geopolitical influences like military might and infrastructure initiatives. Africa, like other regions, is deeply affected by this shift.

Africa’s education, business, and food production sectors have been largely influenced by other countries due to the data on African online and purchasing habits. Effective strategies to combat this include introducing competition among major Western corporations, enacting stricter data privacy regulations, and imposing more severe penalties for data violations.

Data Sharing Is Your Choice

For this digital generation, this signals a shift in the online advertising landscape. Harvard Business School UPS Foundation Professor Emeritus James L. Heskett opines on possible solutions to surveillance capitalism. 

First, he supports the idea that the government is the first solution. The government can make data privacy laws stricter by monitoring the amount and type of data transported or stored by Big Tech companies. However, there is also the catch of the government using these personal data under the guise of security. 

Another solution he suggested is placing fees on customer data. This would alter business models since they collect data freely based on website usage. By monetizing data, however, companies still have access to someone’s information, albeit at higher prices.  

In conclusion, everyone with a social media account is under the throes of surveillance capitalism. What you can do right now is to safeguard your data. Awareness of surveillance capitalism empowers you to make informed choices about your online presence. As the digital landscape shifts, you can be a driving force in shaping the future of digital interaction, promoting ethical technology use, and championing data privacy rights.