Age of Surveillance Capitalism: “We Thought We Were Searching Google, But Google Was Searching Us”

[@rudiesan_89]

The birth of an Orwellian nightmare

[@maxnullifidian]

It's been a while since I've read 1984, but I seem to recall that only the management class was watched by Big Brother, whereas the "proles" were ignored.

[@rudiesan_89]

@@maxnullifidian You're right.. the proles were indeed worthless. Zuboff here described surveillance capitalism so well. If applied to 1984... The proles are now worthy of Big Brother's surveillance. Capitalism always finds a way to comodyfy everything.

[@christopherspavins9250]

We were so terrified of 1984 we went and built it.

[@DonDeering]

@@christopherspavins9250 That's because there isn't a "we" with shared needs in class society. The people owning the productive "machinery" need to maximize profit by extracting value from the actions of the rest of us. It used to mean paying as little as possible for as much labor as they could squeeze out of us. Now they've found a way to commoditize our information. It used to be clear that the working class's interests were diametrically opposed to the owners' interests; it was in the workers' interest to get as much "pay" (cash and benefits) as possible for the minimum amount of time and energy. While this remains the main division, the capitalist class has found new ways to extract value from human activity. The shallow phonies behind this monetization of personal data think they're so clever, but if humanity should survive and personal prosperity is universalized, they'll be remembered as the small-thinking obstacles they are. Scum!

[@josyphus5835]

RasJam Kebraraw except it is so disingenuous. I hear Lenin talking

[@Achrononmaster]

"If you having nothing to hide then you are nothing." Beautifully put. Thank you for that Shoshana. We are not mere collections of cells, we all have a unique individual non-physical soul, this is how people remember some of the better among us after we are gone.

[@boeingdriver29]

Shoshana has nailed it, will buy her book and as a side note, love her hair.

[@boeingdriver29]

@Mr steal your wife is that what your crystal ball tells you. Jewish yes, Zionist ?

[@martduenas]

So grateful she is using the term "lie" instead of "myth."

[@renatoalcides5104]

"They know everything about us, we know almost nothing about tem."

[@impalabeeper]

That's the intention.

[@mariagaganta4925]

You Think ? 😉

[@lil_weasel219]

huge hierarchies yes

[@whatta1501]

Like when you have a phone conversation, or text a message. Next thing you know you get an advertisement, or link about what you said. It feels so creepy, don't you agree

[@johnbarnesNnaptown]

I get ads about things I've mentioned to friends face to face with Phone in pocket no searches.

[@jumpingeezus5080]

whatta 1 We should text things and have conversations about things we actually want then. Will they give it to us? Maybe we should talk about things that are really important to humanity. All I ever hear most people talk about are very frivilous, unimportant things like so and so scored blah blah points. So and so sang this or that. Who cares? These people talking about it, I guess care about that tripe. Why?

[@spacer4660]

I spoke truth on Facebook then creeps showed up harassing me, my family, and my friends . . . and that’s unlawful if the Constitution has any power? But i can’t lawyer-up on my income. United Slaves of America stock is sinking to a bottomless abyss.

[@loki7389]

@@spacer4660 rally round the family, pocket full of shells

[@marysouza1882]

@@johnbarnesNnaptown The other day I went to a gas station, only got gas, a few minutes later I got a text asking me about my experience about that gas station. It's insane. Everywhere we go, we're being tracked as long as we have a cell phone on us. I know it goes beyond a company being interested in our experience with them.

[@noelmay9]

Sharing this on facebook, despite the irony.

[@Windband1]

LOL

[@JugglinJellyTake01]

Tesco the supermarket had no problem with selling the critical book 'Tescopoly' in it's stores so FB likely does not care. The information asymmetry is so vast that it is likely small potatoes to them.

[@MrChefjms]

ME TOO! LOL

[@RVGODZILLA]

*you gotta be in the matrix to pull ppl out of the matrix*

[@6789uiop]

i have never done social media. I'm not usually THAT right about anything! LOL

[@cordellwynne]

shoshana zuboff is such a super-smart person! Her analysis is amazing and her articulation of it is mind-blowing. I think this is one of the best Democracy Now! stories Ive seen in a long time.

[@1silvervespa]

Got yer head in the Sand if that's how you think.

[@nancymesek]

I searched for a product months ago and the same product shows up in ads every day.

[@makesmefeellikeatalltree8250]

within your browser prefs, you can specify not to track your visits

[@charlottaatlas9995]

Fire sale... since 1983

[@kofitafari7598]

Cornholio 🤔

[@froggleggers1805]

Its called tracking cookies. Disable them or delete them from time to time if it bothers you.

[@jazzypoo7960]

Right now, I run a HOSTS file that blocks Google AdSense and DoubleClick: winhelp2002.mvps.org/hosts.htm

[@user-wp8yx]

This woman is awesome! I'd love to see more of her.

[@peterg3539]

Corporate Manifesto: Own this, Own that, Own you, Own hope, Own the future. BATTLE EVIL WITH EVERYTHING YOU HAVE, Take up a yellow vest May 1st!

[@mbgarrett6349]

Dr. Vandana Shiva touched base on this last week on Democracy Now. It also has to do with patents on our personal information, plus more. In fact, 60 Minutes did a segment on this very same topic about 6 years ago. There was another brief snippet addressing this issue last month on CBS.

[@nrgraff]

Amazing segment, thank you. She's a very compelling speaker, articulating very important theories

[@spacer4660]

I quit Facebook and all social media years ago. Life for me has improved substantially after the corporate hitmen and mysterious creeps have mostly disengaged from harassing me, my family, and my friends. United Slaves of America stock is sinking into an epic abyss and E.Snowden is a hero of humanity!

[@simplethings3730]

The bad news is that even though we know this we still have no defense against it. It is like being tied to a stake and finding out someone is coming to kill you.

[@tylerdavidson9700]

It's not paranoia if they're actually watching everything we do, say and feel- and then trying to influence us for their own profit.

[@meb2126]

Finally: an observer of the observers

[@emilys.7953]

As kramer said "I'm watching the watchers, jerry!"

[@Hashbitnitwit]

Thank you for covering this, Ms. Zuboff. It seems like nobody cares enough in MSM to make an issue out of this. It needs to be a major crime.

[@johnkevill470]

This woman is brilliant. Thank you professor Zuboff for putting in the work to explain the change in the modern world with such detail and clarity.

[@kitkat7523]

The only way to relay private messages is in a letter by post.

[@MrTwenty20video]

Excellent report. Thank you.

[@GreenOrchid9]

New phrase "digital gangsters" = social outlaws = behavior modifications = the elephant in the room

[@carlclark3114]

Why many of us never joined social media.Stunning so many continue supporting the likes of Facebook and google even after the revelations of abuse

[@En8el]

you can join Brax.me and be protected. Only asks for a user name and a password... Is protected from the rest of the Internet data gathering, and all chats, even groups chats are encrypted.

[@Lindenlc10]

Since they are collecting all the data, I suggest we all search Google over and over for this episode AND post it on FB every day. Just a thought. ; )

[@PeacocknRose]

We need to make money off of them making money off of us. If they are being paid millions a year for my personal data, I deserve a piece of that cut

[@Nudnik1]

I agree with you on this subject.. Putin even warned America about smart phone spying.

[@cathjj840]

he was just jealous

[@Nudnik1]

Cath' J J evil KGB had to forcibly spy on Russians ...Yet oddly Americans pay smart phone bill happily to have a" KGB "in their pocket willingly was Putin s point.

[@cathjj840]

of course - just bein' snarky. Saw this telling remark on YT somewhere: The USSR was infamous for its ubiquitous propaganda, but no one there bellieved it. The USA spews just as much propaganda, but most of its citizens take it for the gospel truth.

[@Nudnik1]

Cath' J J except we don't have Gulag labor camps for people like us who disagrees or speak out.

[@davidmatlock7346]

What the corporations have used to their advantage is the fact that people don’t read these extensive agreements when signing up for “Free” apps. Hence, there is no real crime 😖

[@BorisAmar]

The same oppressive system has landed me in a shelter, with not even a cellphone to get a job and people abusing alcohol, smoking in the rooms with damaged fire alarms, rampant sleep deprivation (arguing that this a "shelter", therefore you should not complain) and instances of unreported violence going on all around.

[@stevenwilliambaylessparks3730]

Work, buy, work, buy, work, buy, work, buy, work, buy, work, buy.....

[@obsoleteoptics]

Work Buy Consume Die

[@justmeonthebeach]

Very informative... And very serious... Thank you 🙏..

[@IamRanJos]

So beautifully conveyed ❤

[@tylerlately]

Two documentaries called The Social Dilemma (Shoshanna was in it from what I remember) and Zero Days are great, everyone should watch them.

[@Joseph1NJ]

The problem is user apathy. Most grasp the concept, albeit with not much more than a peripheral understanding, but they just don't care. This is scary stuff. AI / tech is not just responsive and predictive, but influential. The ability to sway the thoughts, emotions, and ultimately actions of billions virtually in real time concentrated into the hands of so few corporations is not just a threat to democracy and freedom, but a threat to humanity.

[@hlholiday]

Thank you for giving this concept an accurate name

[@TonyFoxTarot]

Information is power. However, I feel empowered after listening to this. We can all make choices that either slow or halt our personal data being tapped..

[@ethicalpatriot8661]

4G/Market Capitalism++5G/Surveillance Capitalism. New fronteirs need new understanding and safeguards for our freedoms. Great interview.

[@thebishop1301]

Nice to hear that the UK gov has looked into this. But I haven't seen it mentioned on BBC TV News yet, and I suspect i never will.....

[@shiracohenyoga3492]

Thank you Shoshona for your work, and words of encouragement!

[@juliaset751]

Just telling us that we have a problem doesn’t solve the problem, we already knew that. How do we fix the problem?

[@obsoleteoptics]

It's up to us to figure that out

[@paulpeartsmith]

Most people aren't at step one let alone two.

[@emilys.7953]

@@paulpeartsmith i believe we need to get the word out to everyone we can first. I read this book about 3 years ago. I will always remember that "the powers that be" consider us "automated carcasses."

[@johnbarnesNnaptown]

I composed a phrase in my head to search in google. I typed the first letter and the whole phrase appeared.

[@kevinhornbuckle]

We are "free"!

[@machatte3522]

Excellent presentation...wonderful shoshana zuboff. Mostly this civilazation is dormant...hope a lot of people could reach this video👍

[@solstice2318]

Human optimization. At the bottom line there is only one issue. Fearing it isn't useful. George Carlin resumed it all many years ago.

[@GS-gq5is]

After listening to this presentation, the word that comes to mind is: sublime.

[@aclark1197]

No one should have gone through what many families have gone through inclusive of deprivation, mental shock therapy, harrassment , gang stalking and addressing this seems to inspire some to continue this abuse and meanwhile our leaders some of them completely ignoring the most blatant egregious acts. My brother suffered in NJ and what has been done but to ignore this. We need viable strong leaders who will fight for the rights of those who have been disenfranchised ignored overlooked by this government. Governor Murphy Senator Booker Senator Menedez Former Governor Christie Former leaders all know about this . It's is injustice and a violation of Democratic principles.

[@babycakes2077]

Internet = end of world 🤮

[@BloomGlare]

Shoshana's intellect is like a lighthouse in a storm.

[@mokopenipatene4564]

I'm the 1% at the bottom. The cure to capitalism is to have none

[@emotionalinvalid]

And many of you thought totalitarianism could only exist in communist countries .

[@gaslitmasses75]

I soiled my undergarments when I watched this interview... and, of course, "they" already know this

[@CC-rv3ro]

Thank you!

[@JR-ly6bx]

Amazing topic and super smart author, great interview

[@Em-wb4kf]

Brilliant commentary!!

[@electroncommerce]

All that data sounds mighty helpful for use in machine learning projects for DARPA, NSA, FBI, ICE, HUD, IRS, and almost any other government agency. Technocratic Utopia!

[@TheSeekersofTruth]

The head of these corporation, Facebook and Google below in prison at the very least or the people should rise up and seek justice on their terms.

[@lisahyyppa3360]

Essential & disturbing discussion of the realities we face

[@maxnullifidian]

I never have been and never will be on Facebook or Twitter.

[@ceciliasperry663]

God in Heaven, help us all.

[@aclark1197]

I'm a sacrifice for speaking my truth about the conduct of leaders here in NJ. This government knew about COVID 19 long before People suffering because of their lack of knowledge about their government. It's utterly disgraceful.

[@doraincoimbra8583]

This is also happening in schools, mining personal information of students.

[@edgar4256]

How does this only have less than 40k views?????

[@themorales3052]

Can someone explain in simple terms what Shoshana meant by "Private surveillance capital has institutionalized asymmetrics of knowledge unlike ever seen in human history"(time 16:00)

[@UTubeISphere]

Private surveillance capital (= Google, FB, and other sources capital invested in studying us, including other private organisations engaged in this) 'institutionalised' = put into practice through sign-on agreements, perhaps also monthly contributions, different teams and experts, departments, etc) 'asymmetries of knowledge' - as she mentioned in the next sentence, Google knows a lot about me in terms of my politics, age, gender, hobbies, health, my social circle, etc, whereas I know very little about Google / Alphabet, Facebook. 'in human history' - in the past, the state, church, or private entities would know very little about you and me apart from perhaps some basic records (birth, death, perhaps also marriage, perhaps additional stuff from court records).

[@dinnerwithfranklin]

Good show. Thanks

[@njosborne6152]

Interestingly enough, the Congress just gave the prez His 💲25 Billion in border security! Much of the 💲24 Billion goes for surveillance. This includes monies for Surveillance Drones Working 100 miles in from our contiguous border, All of Hawaii and Puerto Rico‼️ Better wake up y’all‼️ We can only blame the Republicans Liars, thugs and mobsters are running Our country‼️ Monocultures are impossible to maintain over time They simply burn themselves and their environments out. Drink no poisoned water Eat no poisoned food And breath no poisoned air. It’s not good for you, Your family or animals. The doc pretty much hit it on the head‼️

[@Will_Moffett]

She talks about how the network technology has been used to modify our behavior towards the commercial ends of corporations. But that's little more than advertising through a new, though more invasive, medium. The real danger is thought control in the political sphere, which the author seems to ignore. I'm just as skeptical about a Harvard academic's view on this subject as I was before seeing her speak.

[@km1dash6]

What's funny is I'm going to get my MA in Psychology and want to use some of this data. I think that the laws an policies around informed consent should be updated, and there should be stricter laws on anonymizing the data.

[@1delta_10tangos]

I was first introduced to this concept watching Alex Jones' show INFOWARS back in 2012.

[@mutroom9914]

The Society of the Spectacle

[@mitchellkrouth5083]

Thank you for all the great work You are the best

[@juju2345]

B Mod in academia did not disappear in 1980. They just changed the name.

[@katehillier1027]

Hard to watch but absolutely essential frightening scary goodness.❤️❤️❤️🥩🥩❤️❤️❤️💐💐💐💐🥦🥦

[@mcmahonp1]

The BBC ran a story on Friday to say that Facebook is trying to get around EU tough regulations on sharing data by suggesting that most users don't publicize their information and thereby keeping their information private, suggesting Facebook is just a conduit and nothing more.

[@crotacheese2424]

Get rid of your "Smartphones"!!! I did two years ago and haven't been this happy for a long time \o/

[@jjutt87]

I just downgraded to the most basic smartphone for that reason, but now I miss the power of that sweet camera :-/

[@pointyfingers]

Don’t blame the technology. Don’t be a Luddite. Don’t self-disarm. Just read up on operational security if you’re worried about it. The intercept has a great set of articles on how to protect yourself in protests and when arrested, etc.

[@alrhayul5536]

Using basic phones doesn't give you anymore privacy. Also, if you at all have a social life, they extract info about you from your social network, they have the tech to map out everything about without you ever going on their site or using their apps (or affiliates). And the "intelligence" agencies work hand-in-hand with everyone. They got dirt on probably every person who knows someone who's co-worker's friend uses the internet or has a landline.

[@imovertheocean]

not having a smartphone takes you out of notification hell, it's worth doing and get good protection on your computer, it's a start

[@simplethings3730]

So how did you watch this interview and comment on it. Maybe it was not a smartphone but it was a smart device of some kind. Your comment alone contains data that can be used. Somewhere in the trillions of lines of data that are being analyzed is a line that says this person got rid of their smartphone 2 years ago.

[@crouchingwombathiddenquoll5641]

Loaded a weather app....it wanted access to my emails, the right to monitor and make phone calls.....WTF !

[@rubensnogueira3199]

5:54 She is wrong: the development we see *IS* inevitable. Does anyone see the public ready to rollback all the "great" apps we have now, just because we need less dangerous solutions? Technology is a power, much stronger than us, and has the potencial to make us all slaves in a way or another. Jacques Ellul wrote about that almost 70 years ago.

[@simpsond7862]

It is not even as technical as that, in uk there is is at least one camera for ten people and before you go to bed at night look out of your window you will see if you look hard enough a drone that is monitoring your phone calls and possibly more.

[@lillieholmes4521]

I believe everything this lady says, every time I type, seems like I can see hands on my keyboard, so I know it’s surveillance, but WHY?

[@JOHNNYHAULAWAY]

Capitalism will be the end of human kind. AND Greed, fear and selfishness,, are the weaknesses that feed it

[@supermodelatlanta1354]

makes me want to use a payphone for .35 open the phonebook and call some one

[@BudandBloomWithBlossom]

Exactly. Leave cell phones at home. Speak to people face-to-face, by letter.

[@Nohiding]

Problem 1. Spin doctor. Problem 2. These companies are propelling our civilization forward faster then ever before in human history. Problem 3. They are doing it for free. Problem 4. I've never had the ability to find exactly what I wanted to buy for my own enjoyment in my history except for recently. Problem 5. I used to search for days and miles to find the items I wanted to purchase. Now they find me. Problem 6. Health, wealth, and happiness have never been more attainable. Problem 7. All of this is only possible with these companies and the creative ways they use our data.

[@xerxes575]

great message... also great hair!

[@babycakes2077]

They frack our shit!

[@stenstenbk7287]

What a sane voice!

[@suzannehartmann946]

Be careful what names you call Google it is run/owned by NSA/CIA/MI6

[@judymeyer4315]

So should we trust Windows "Edge" or any other platform?

[@papalaz]

Not really they are all the same, unless someone from another country can make a platform like FB but also a different search engine, the other alternative is to vote them out change the way we been governed.

[@En8el]

Yes, FIGHT for your privacy! (BTW, I got this tip from Rob Braxman Tech here on KZbin. He's a trustworthy & experienced programmer, his solutions are factual. GET EDUCATED FROM ROB!!) Isolate your activities to separate browsers: chrome for google products, Firefox for Amazon & everything else, and Brave (or other minor browser like Edge) ONLY for Facebook. Don't click on stuff from FB; copy and paste, eliminating FB's extra referring characters if you want to check out a link you see on FB. That way, google & FB can't track what you buy, at least from your browsing actions. Rob recommends you use Windows Defender for anti-virus, and nothing else.

[@Harvardfacebook]

Capitalism isn't the problem, the problem is the abuse of the capitalist system by Humans, who constantly change the laws with the help of their hierarchy friends to take full advantage of the capitalist system, and in doing so, jump to the front of the queue, crab as much as they can leaving crumbs for the rest of us to fight and kill each other for. It is my belief that capitalism can work for all of us on an equal and fair level, just not the way they have been doing it. I will buy, and read the book with a passion. Good job girl, keep up the good work.

[@dehsa38]

"Surveillance Capitalism" is a small facet of what's going on that's going to impact every area of life.

[@spencerjames9417]

This is even more relevant now

[@bigdaz7272]

YOU are the product. Don't ever forget it. Purge you life of advertising, if you do see a product advertised that you want buy the none advertised alternative, buy used goods and from the Black Market whenever possible, don't use credit go without until you can afford it, consumerism is cancer, cut it out.

[@obsoleteoptics]

People love their stuff too much

[@Achrononmaster]

There is a simple answer to having customized apps without corporate surveillance: use free libre open source apps that personalize your work locally. Memory is plentiful and cheap these days, so go back to a personal computer not connected to the Cloud, save your private data on your local device. Your local device and ONLY your local device is powerful enough to customize all your needs, independent of the internet Cloud. Take a leaf out of the Book of St Ignacius (Richard Stallman). Cloud computing has made people into pathetic idiots unwittingly giving away their private data to oligarchs. (I acknowledge the irony of posting this on KZbin!!). #GNULinux #FreeLibreSoftware

[@cdeluz]

Big Brother is watching us, and it goes far beyond search engines and social websites. Windows 10 was initially "free." Microsoft is monitoring everything you write (e.g., to whom it was written, when it was written, and what you wrote about). As for the Goliaths, she neglected to mention Xfinity (Comcast). Your name, address, and phone number are published on the internet at www.ecolisting.com. for anyone to access if you have a landline with them.

[@shadetreader]

Everything we were told to fear from communısm has come true under capıtalism.

[@Olyphantman]

And we’re on KZbin using our gmail calling out Google and Facebook.

[@heberje]

Fossil fuel gangsters pose a bigger threat to our planet than digital gangsters.

[@benparkinson8314]

Respect!!

[@msenthilkumaran6069]

Human beings! You are almost done.

[@Hands2HealNow]

The US BILL of RIGHTS respect can easily be brought to bare on a criminal charge to any corporation operating within the US.

[@spacer4660]

Who has that kind of $$$ to lawyer up? And where to find an honest lawyer? United Slaves of America stock is plummeting into bottomless abyss.

[@Hands2HealNow]

@@spacer4660 Smart folks are their somewhere. Get in touch with Ralph Nader and know that solutions are there for you.

[@thisklik]

i like that is written MOCRACY when Shoshana is talking

[@Joseph1NJ]

I tried to have this conversation on a tech site last month. The blowback I got was nothing more than apathetic. Your thoughts are no longer yours, I said. Crickets...

[@paranormalsoulcircle3176]

I don't blame these companies I blame the people allowing this crap to happen we take everything that is fed to us... with no question