So, it turns out that Facebook has a lot more data than you thought it did. But that is not the worst.
As an example of how bad this is, when you connect to Facebook Messenger all your phone contacts are uploaded to Facebook. Facebook NEVER deletes any data and also tracks whom you ‘unfriend’, forever. You do not have the option to delete your ‘unfriend’ data at all. Even if you “DELETE” your Facebook account, your data may live on forever in other databases.
The New York Times tech section published an ed piece about Facebook data, it is truly terrifying and more so when one considers that there is nothing that African society can immediately do to protect Africans from the multinational tech companies.
As if that is so bad: In volume, and when when comparing similar accounts in data, between Facebook and Google: Google has over FOUR TIMES (4x) as much data about you, as Facebook does.
The same multinationals whom decide what is news, influences your very thoughts and may also decide the outcome of ‘democratic’ elections in countries.
Mark Zuckerberg has recently (yesterday) testified before the US Congress, and in over 10 hours of testimony, the outcome is that most commentators agree that the problem facing society has outgrown the ability of society to protect itself.
Africans have been exploited by extreme capitalism, which rewards tech companies with millions of percentage points in profits where the tech companies sell, use and capitalize the same technology to generate trillions of potential dollars in future profits and to the detriment of African society itself.
These tech companies (Google, Twitter, Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft, Apple etc.) call themselves ‘disruptors’ and lie to themselves by telling themselves that they are “improving society” yet, truthfully, they are enslaving all of society and digitally colonizing societies of the world. They roam the planet like hungry predators, collecting products (people) and data. Even Google’s Youtube, was recently exposed for collecting data of children as old as six years of age.
African society is addicted and locked into the top ten American multinationals. It is so bad that it is impossible for a government to immediately act, to protect their people. Remedies have to be implemented in a five or ten year plan and is limited to implementing new legislation about data protection. Unfortunately the horse has already left the barn and people are already addicted and locked in. If any Government should decide to simply ban the American multinationals that Government would face opposition from it’s own addicts (voters) and be accused of limiting “free speech” – so, African society is stuck between a ROCK and a HARD PLACE.
Many African societies have not yet even started the process of planning their escape from the digital colonization and many do not yet even realize how digitally enslaved they have become.
One thing that these predatory tech companies have in common? They are all American. But that does not mean that much as extreme capitalism is not just an American thing. Even in South Africa many little children are legally murdered each year by South African extreme capitalists. All throughout the world predators and predatory companies are exploiting people to make a buck.
Mark Zuckerberg says that: “Facebook is in an arms race with Russia” Yes, that does sound like a war. Yes, that does sound like weapons. Yes, that is probably a true statement. Yes, people should be awake, aware and people should know what is happening around them.
