After reading the article Explainer: what is surveillance capitalism and how does it shape our economy? I managed to gain more insight into how different companies who own websites, browsers etc. all use our (consumers’) web searches, people we interact with and pages we view to create a sort of “profile” for us that they can use to market and sell our information to other companies/entities. As the article states, “Surveillance capitalism describes a market driven process where the commodity for sale is your personal data, and the capture and production of this data relies on mass surveillance of the internet. This activity is often carried out by companies that provide us with free online services, such as search engines (Google) and social media platforms (Facebook). These companies collect and scrutinize our online behaviors (likes, dislikes, searches, social networks, purchases) to produce data that can be further used for commercial purposes. And it’s often done without us understanding the full extent of the surveillance.” (Source) Like most people, this is concerning to me because there is virtually no way for us, the consumer, to regulate what our own information is being used for or who is viewing our information.

One point this article raised that was perhaps the most concerning was, “Commonly used wearables like smart watches and fitness trackers, for example, are becoming part of everyday health care practices. Our activities and biometric data can be stored and used to interpret our health and fitness status. This same data is of great value to health insurance providers. In the US, some insurance providers require a data feed from the policyholder’s device in order to qualify for insurance cover. (Source) This was particularly disconcerting because one’s health and medical status is something that is very private and something that should be secure between said person and their doctor/healthcare provider. However, when someone’s health is being tracked by a device like a smart watch or fitness tracker, this leaves people’s sensitive information to be left in the hands of the tech and for the people who make these devices to do with whatever they please. I know that I, personally, would not be okay with any of my health information being disclosed to anyone through a smartwatch. Tech isn’t always reliable and if I (or anyone, for that matter) wasn’t able to get health insurance because of some sort of error, that would obviously be a huge problem.

I think that not allowing technology like smartwatches to be able to be used to determine someone’s health status (or any other status, really) is important in mitigating most people’s concerns when it comes to surveillance and technology. Making sure that big companies like Facebook, Apple, Google, Amazon etc. are all being watched carefully and regulated when it comes to what kind of information they’re allowed to share and whom with, as well as disclosing this to their consumers is important, as well. Allowing users and consumers to decide what kind of information they wish to share with companies other than whatever website they’re using in the first place might also help with making people less worried about where their information is going and what’s being done with it.