Arwa Mahdawi in The Guardian brings us to a close by asking the question that has been on everyone’s lips all week. Are the Cambridge Analytica revelations the final nudge we need to turn away from the social network? And, this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to big tech harvesting private information. Is it time to delete Facebook?
In my opinion, the answer is no. Facebook provides an incredible service that is very much needed. They provide a digital commons around which we all commune. This recent event is a sign of a broader chain of their regular decisions, actions, and ethos. But, I don’t think it’s worth leaving the network. I do think this shows a need for a broader public dialogue about our rights and freedoms online. We cannot put the genie back in the bottle. We cannot wish for a world without big data and big tech. But, we can clearly indicate and enforce the rights, rules, and freedoms we demand online. In short, we need an Internet Bill of Rights for all users. Europe’s GDPR may be the continuation of these events.
You may want to delete your private Facebook data without deleting your account. Please be advised…Facebook isn’t going to make it easy on you.
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