Digital Citizenship

A major theme throughout this seminar is the problems that arise from new technologies are often not computer science problems but political ones.  If we look back, the expansion of the Internet during its beginnings was not a problem of technology but of politics.  The Arpanet was a government funded project, so it had strict rules and regulations.  This caused grand questions and debates to arise over the appropriate uses of the Internet, especially in regards to commerce and communication.  Going further, the ability to reach superhuman intelligence is not a question of computer science as much as it is one of politics.  With the current trend of computing, I am certain that our computers will eventually become powerful enough to replicate the human mind and engineers will utilize that power to create a new form of intelligence.  However, the question is should we pursue this goal of superhuman intelligence and if so, how do we prevent it from being the end of life as we know it.  This week we addressed the problems of politics in the Internet directly by discussing digital citizenship and how governments are transforming their image in the digital space to adapt to the new times.

An interesting conversation that we had was about civic tech companies, which provide services that are for the good of society and directly interact with government.  An interesting company that came up in conversation was Sidewalk Labs, a company that began at Google.  What Sidewalk Labs does is provide free internet and other services throughout New York city; they are able to do this by installing what people are calling “black boxes” throughout the entire city.  Now on the surface, it seems as if Sidewalk Labs is a wonderful company that desires to better the lives of Americans.  However, if you stop and question how Sidewalk Labs makes money when all the services they provide are free is sickening.  As we discussed in our seminar, these “black boxes” are constantly collecting data about everyone who interacts with them and even those who simply just walk by.  That’s a scary concept.  These devices are collecting data that was previously impossible to do on this scale.  They can track your daily schedule, who you interact with, and what you do constantly.  They can track conversations you have and  who knows what else without your consent.  I brought up this company because the problems that arise from Sidewalks Labs is yet again not one of technology but politics.  Obviously, it is not difficult to create a device that sniffs data from its surrounding environment; what is challenging though is regulating this.  New York City is generating revenue by leasing the land that was once occupied by now useless phone booths to Sidewalk Labs to install their “black boxes”, and Sidewalk Labs makes money by selling user data.  Now this seems like a win for both government and the corporation, without taking into consideration the huge implications this decision can have on life.  NYC practically gave Sidewalk Labs the rights to spy and collect data on all of its inhabitants at the most intimate level.  While Sidewalk Labs may not necessarily have malicious intentions, this kind of agreement drastically diminishes one’s sense of privacy.  Overall, it is examples like these that make you question whether the ability to do something is enough reason to pursue it.  These questions often fall under politics, and I don’t think governments are devoting enough efforts to ensuring proactive policies are set in place.