There are good reasons to be concerned about TikTok, but it should be part of a larger conversation around privacy and surveillance capitalism.
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Four years ago, a group of academics, technology experts and activists came together in the meeting rooms of Thoughtworks Australia with a shared vision: to unite in their advocacy against the recently passed mandatory metadata retention laws. Much was discussed about the state of human rights in online spaces and the ramping up of attacks from conservative governments.
Read MoreFacial recognition technology is being deployed across Australia. Local governments, corporations large and small, federal and state government departments and law enforcement agencies are rolling out these surveillance systems, all without you getting a say or perhaps even noticing. Numerous investigations have shown that the technology can be dangerously inaccurate, racially biased, and frequently misused. In at least one case, it has led to false accusation and imprisonment. Some of the biggest tech companies in the world have recognised the danger of this technology. In 2020, Google, Microsoft and IBM either withdrew their technologies from sale or ceased working on the technology altogether.
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When you visit a campsite, we all know the right thing to do is to leave it better than we found it.
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While it may be easy to laugh off some of the more ridiculous things spouted by our oft-out-of-touch politicians, it would be unwise to underestimate the power, impact and potential harm of their messaging.
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The government sure has asked for a lot of trust from the public recently. Australians have been asked to disregard a long history of overreach, scope creep, data breaches and abuses of power, in favour of a request to take the government on their word about the COVIDSafe App because ’this time it’s different – we promise!'
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