What a week it’s been – first the Facebook data scandal and then the Grab-Uber deal in South-east Asia, and at the heart of it, our identities.
The former led to outrage that we could have been so manipulated by marketers targeting our social profiles (we always have been, it’s just the scale is so outrageous these days) and wondering if we should #deletefacebook.
Some did it for a week and then announced, “I’m back” – not sure what they were trying to prove, that they’re as addicted as the rest of us? Truth is, we – those who use social media – are in the midst of a mass addiction and just with any drugs, it’ll be hard to kick the habit.
I found myself changing my settings and then wondering should I delete? And then asking myself, what if I were to delete this, how would it affect that and that because it’s all owned by the same company?
Various parts of our identities are now owned by various companies controlled by one entity that we wonder if we delete one account, will we lose a part of us?
Who are we without our social media profiles? I found myself re-watching this video of Facebook’s former chief of user growth, Chalapath Palihapitiya, speaking of his regret for building tools that are ripping society apart.
I’ve seen my friends (and me too) gradually turn into zombies. It’s not an overnight thing, it’s a creep thing, all of us caught in the neither-here-nor-there land.
We’re present physically somewhere but we’re transported through our smartphone to a virtual world in which we are “liked” by so many people – so who cares about the person sitting right in front of me?
To #deletefacebook or not – that is the question: (Image credit: dikobraziy/iStock Getty Images)
Google has the same power over us. Yesterday, I was moderating a panel of hotel CEOs at a hotel investment conference (HICAP Update) and I asked them who had facilitated their best in-destination experience, thinking they’d name a host or concierge, given they are in the business of hospitality.
But one of them said “Google”, which was the same answer he gave when I asked him what was his favourite travel app. So again, you ask yourself, what if I were to delete one Google account, how would it affect my entire identity and life?
We’re all caught up like spiders in a web of data, bits of which are owned by a handful of companies and we are at their mercy as to how they behave with it, in the absence of government regulation.
Likewise with Grab buying Uber in South-east Asia and taking over the entire operations from March 26. Our data – drivers and riders alike – will be handed from one company to the other, lock, stock and barrel.
Of course, we have a choice, we can say #deleteuber – that sounds familiar – but can we give up the addiction of that instant hit of gratification? And for drivers, what choice do they have? We riders surrendered our data for convenience, they did it for their livelihoods.
I met an Uber driver yesterday and he said, “I won’t drive for Grab.” He’s part-time so he has the option. He invests in stocks and now, crypto currencies. “Our parents’ generation, they made money through real estate. Our generation is crypto currencies,” he told me.
One positive outcome of this spotlight on data is it will make everyone more aware and vigilant – governments, companies and us as individuals.
For companies who are responsible with data, it’s their opportunity to talk about that. For companies who’ve had a lackadaisical approach, it’s time to spruce up.
On the regulation side, it may accelerate the spread of the EU GDPR – General Data Protection Regulation – to other markets. Hailed as the most important change in data privacy regulation in 20 years, it will be enforced by May 2018.
For us as individuals, we need to be more aware and mindful of how we behave and what we share on social networks.
Data is no longer the new gold, it is the new dirt and we have to make sure we don’t end up as the dirt.
Anyone out there want to start a “Social Media Anonymous” club with me?
• Featured image credit: phive2015/iStock-GettyImage
