We Need to Change How We Talk About Technology
In these tumultuous days, the world is divided and everyone has an opinion. It’s hard to blame people for being overly emotional in their discussions on particular topics, especially when it’s just casual talks between friends. However, a recent trend in reporting about social apps and the internet in general has become quite disturbing to me. It all started with news that Signal, a messaging app that’s famous for being private and catering to some vulnerable groups in our population, introduced 40-person group calls. In response, Gizmodo, a pretty popular outlet, published a news piece titled: “Signal Now Lets You Call Up to 39 of Your Fellow Criminals at Once”. If you raised your eyebrow at this, you’re not alone. It’s time to discuss how we talk about technology.
The Unexplained Dangers of Speaking in Private
So, why does Gizmodo joke about Signal being for criminals? Same reason why news coverage of things like Tor, Telegram and even VPNs often gets reduced to “it’s a dangerous place for conspiracy theorists and criminals” — all of these things offer privacy. For one reason or another, the privacy of others has now become a subject of debate. The persistent fear that this privacy will be used for criminal things clouds people judgment, all despite the fact that most people will use that privacy to make snide remarks about friends, share grocery lists and just chat about nothing.
It’s increasingly apparent that tools used by millions of people are not judged based on the majority but, rather, the vocal minority. German politicians are now debating whether or not Telegram should be banned because some people spread COVID misinformation on it, while others are reiterating that killing a horse because a fly landed on it is a rash decision at best. There is a dialogue to be had about how we, as a society, can regulate our online spaces, be they Reddit, Twitter or Signal, to include good, law-abiding people and exclude criminals and dangerous folks. However, that debate is clearly not being held yet, as more and more outlets prefer to focus on the “danger” of people opening up a messaging app and chatting with friends, just because a hundred out of a million users might lead them down a bad path.
Such concerns could be a symptom of a society plagued by Facebook’s nasty algorithms, which intentionally push users down rabbit holes of craziness and hatred. What they miss, though, is that Facebook is this one centralized experience where you can’t just log in and talk to one person. You will, like it or not, see constant notifications and recommended posts, directing you to whatever Facebook thinks will engage you. Neither Telegram, nor Tor, nor any other tool we use for privacy, does that. They simple provide a place to talk and if somebody decides to talk not about office matters, well, that choice was made long before they ended up using these services.
The Fall Guys of Tech
Heaping the problems of radicalization, crime and civil unrest on the shoulders of apps that weren’t even available when the problems began is not just short-sighted, it’s also dangerous. It helps perpetuate the myth that, at this point, all we need is to just shut down something, anything. Sure, Facebook finally ending its vile reign would be a net positive on everyone’s mental health, but it’s not a cure. Fixing a leaky faucet won’t save you when the ship you’re on is halfway underwater.
Shutting down tools like Signal or banning VPNs will not only do nothing to curb crime or fake news, it will actively harm people’s privacy and freedom to communicate, especially in places where it’s needed most. Back when Telegram was used in Hong Kong and Belarus protests, outlets touted it as a champion of the people. Perhaps it’s hard to see the hypocrisy in cheering on an app when it helps people in dictatorships have a safe place to talk while simultaneously calling for your own citizens to lose access to it. But a lack of logical thinking isn’t an excuse, it’s a condemnation of how we treat tech that helps us all while we gleefully buy another Facebook-produced VR set or believe that Apple will protect us all while its “anti-tracking” measures do next to nothing to stop tracking.
Think Twice
So next time you see an article that only mentions some dealer getting caught selling weed through a Signal account, think about this: before Signal existed, that guy was still selling it. He might have been using Facebook or WhatsApp or, hell, even Twitter. But all of those platforms happily share info with law enforcement, even without really having to. It’s only when a company decides to take a stand, to have this layer of protection between your communications and prying eyes, that others start to get worried.
Why is that?
