Data, privacy and censorship

Data, privacy and censorship
👋 Hi, I am Mark. I am a strategic futurist and innovation keynote speaker. I advise governments and enterprises on emerging technologies such as AI or the metaverse. My subscribers receive a free weekly newsletter on cutting-edge technology.

Good Day! This is my weekly newsletter, with a dose of insights into the future. The topic of this newsletter is the exponential times we live in, hence the title of f(x) = e^x, which is the (natural) exponential function.

Recently, I launched my new concept The Digital Speaker and you can now book me as an avatar or hologram. Also, my tech trend prediction for 2021 is out, read it here!


How to Ensure Your Privacy in a Data-Driven Future

My latest article:

There is a downside to the abundant presence of data in today’s society. Organisations have been aggregating vast amounts of data in return for ‘free’ services. The problem with ‘free' services is that you and your data are the actual product. This has resulted in a centralised web and a handful of organisations dominating and controlling it, thereby increasingly violating your privacy.

Fortunately, in recent years, media attention to these problems has grown. Consequently, consumers have become more aware of the consequences of data that is in the hands of technology companies. Increasingly, they demand change or take action themselves. Consumers start to see privacy once again as an important good that they want to protect. How can you protect your privacy in a society where data is everywhere?


Three Useful Nuggets of Information

My weekly tips from around the web to get you thinking.

1. WeChat censors conversations, automatically in real-time.
WeChat has over 1.1 billion users. It is one of the most advanced apps in the world, that is used for everything. However, the app is also strictly controlled by the Chinese government, and the super app can instantly block messages and images if the Chinese government does not allow them, even in private conversations. (MIT)

2. The big data revolution is over, if baseball is an indication.
The rise of big data was clearly shown in baseball. Made famous in the book Moneyball, the Oakland Athletics baseball team used a data-driven approach to beat their opponents. But the data-driven baseball revolution is over. Does that also apply to big data in general? (The Washington Post)

3. Why governments are afraid of Libra.When Facebook announced Libra, it sparked fears among governments and central banks all over the globe. This week, there are congressional hearings to better understand Libra and the G7 has announced a task force to deal with Libra. Why are governments so afraid of Libra? (The Washington Post)


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