Writings in the Sand

Someone to Watch Over Me

When Rockwell wrote this song in 1984, it was a bit of a fun poke at the type of paranoia that we are all given to at times. Because it’s about a common feeling, the song didn’t tread into the area of making light of real mental illness. But if Rockwell felt like he was being watched 36 years ago, what sort of song would he write about 2020?

We have all grown used to the way that our web browsers track us and how they tell Facebook which products we were interested in looking up yesterday so that we then face multiple assaults by ads aimed at selling us that very product. Twenty years ago, when I was first venturing out into the internet, the very thought would have freaked me out. But now, I just murmur discontentedly about unsolicited ads on Facebook and keep going. There’s a lot to do and it’s easier sometimes to ignore the privacy issues because getting the job done requires the systems that present these issues.

Free stuff often comes at a high price.

If we paid for Facebook or Google or Zoom, then we would and should expect high priority given to protecting our personal information. But, can you imagine how many people would sign up for a paid Facebook? Right, not many. And Facebook would cease to exist with a pay to post model. Big companies don’t use free conferencing programs, because they need privacy and not Zoom bombing.

The reason that Facebook and other social media programs are free to use is because they are not the product. You are. The user supplies personal data, interests, shopping habits, feedback on purchases, location and a list of their friends and family. All of this data helps the tech giants to sell ads, and to sell you. And still, we continue to sign in and sign up for data mining.

The other day I was watching a YouTube video on my laptop. It was a knitting pattern for a slipper and the audio was in Russian (with video instructions and rudiments of language like numbers, it’s quite possible to follow a pattern in another language). Suddenly, the Duolingo language learning app on my phone sent me a notification, reminding me that I still had goals to meet in my Russian lessons.

So yes, we are all definitely being spied upon by our technology. Somebody is watching us, and listening to us, and even knows when what they hear is in Russian. Freaky.

But I am still using all this free social media and taking my chances. I guess convenience has won out over paranoia. I am not sure that is a good thing.