Never Mind the NSA, What About Google and Facebook?

I don't think this is the is a particularly strong argument, but an incredibly important point none the less.

There are different mechanisms and motivations by which corporations gain, express and are removed from power. But I remain thoroughly unconvinced that those make the power wielded somehow benign.

There are differences, sure, but to quote my favorite blogger: Wired are more horrified about NSA spying, despite there being an explicit terms of service agreement with them that what it finds without a warrant is inadmissible, but Google monitoring my sexts for their commercial benefit is SAGE approved behavioral economics. Google buying Boston Dynamics is better than DARPA having it, is that the game we're playing now? If I had to put my chips and my children against an 8 year rotation of civil service nincompoops vs. some nerd with an open marriage who spent $15M on a "bachelor pad" so he could score chicks of questionable emotional stability, I'm going with the group my private sector lawyers have an outside chance of pwoning.

Hysterics choose sides, realists distrust government and commercial interests equally. But the key to evaluating the threat can be summed up in the Senator's own words: "private sector entities gathering personal data for marketing and commercial purposes". That's it. I don't want to buy the crap Google and Facebook want to sell me, but I do want to use their services to make my own life easier. I'll keep on benefitting from this unequal relationship until I feel uncomfortable.

Government agencies, on the other hand, are not as forthcoming about their motives. "We spy on you to keep you safe?" No you don't. You spy on other people to keep me safe. You spy on me to keep other people safe. Who are these people? Why do they feel threatened by me? Are these people who have a reason to fear me? Should I rather fear them?

So no, not never mind the NSA. Or any other three letter agency. There's a world of difference between the transparent and often sleazy motives of commercial entities, and the secretive and often sinister motives of governments, government agencies, and the "patriots" who blindly support them.

>So I ask you this: Why is it that a popularly elected and democratically accountable government—the democracy in which Americans take such pride—is more suspect than immensely large and wealthy private corporations?

To offer my perspective on this, and feel free to disagree.

Corporations could (and do) use the data to increase profits - mostly through marketing and selling the data to marketers. While invasive of peoples' privacy - their freedoms remain intact.

Government could use the data for control, to maintain power over the people and could use it maliciously through imprisonment and maltreatment of people based entirely on the collected data. While also invasive of privacy - it has a risk of limiting freedoms or worse. People fear the possibility of this.

It's not that people necessarily trust corporations with their data (most users are simply unaware) - but rather that they have less to fear from companies than the government.

The government might revoke my drivers license because I show signs of road rage. The license being revoked could lose my transportation to work, losing my job. In the current economy and lack of job availability in my area - I'd lose my house. All over a little blob of data the government decided to use against me. Meanwhile, Google having that same information might show me ads for an anger management class.

I'd rather Google have it than the government in my contrived and made up example. I imagine that's why fewer people care if Google/Facebook know everything but want to keep that information from the government.

Privacy-concerned people use alternative-to-Google services like Duckduckgo and don't even have a Facebook. So they don't trust corporations either (although ironically turn to smaller corporations as alternatives?)

Never Mind the NSA, Google and Facebook. What about your own employer or recruitment firms? http://www.benhowell.net/future/2015/05/03/people-analytics-...

Google and Facebook keeps most loud noise on internet happy by giving them free stuff. Actual quote from a comment here: "Google gives their software for free, I don't see any reason to oppose them". So don't be disappointed if people don't hear you out. Nice article, thank you and good luck

I think this is hinting towards a future where end-users will expect end-to-end encryption for everything by default. As a consumer I never want to think about who's watching me, I just want it to be impossible.