This post is about the overwhelming control that one technological firm can have on the lives of its consumers. Unsurprisingly I have Google in mind. I want to list down(only because people read lists more often now) the aspects of my life that are, if not in direct control, then at least influenced heavily. It has a list of things that are "sent through" the servers of a company called Google Inc.
---- Google knows what searches I make on line ( the Google search engine)
---. Google suggests me things I may have meant when I "Google" stuff online (the "did you mean..... ?option" and actually every time Google has suggested something I have always clicked on it. because I have always meant it.
---Since I use Google Chrome . It has conveniently stored my bookmarks for me, and I(or it) can access them on any computer I(or it) like(or likes). Also knows how frequently I visit which websites because saves history.
---It knows which videos I watch. Which video channels I have subscribed to and with which adds to target me ( Youtube)
----- The email that I send and receive( I use gmail).What? Most people use gmail now.
-----Google translate knows what is the level of the language that I may be learning online. This is a long shot though but its still there.
----It knows the news I read from which website and knows how much time I spend reading which paper and which news item the most. ( Google RSS reader app on my phone and Google Reader on chrome)
--- I have had an android phone for a while now. So it knows the contacts I have( the Google sync contact feature) along with their email addresses oh but hey it already has all the contact details because I use gmail)
---Because I sync all important data on the "Google on-line Drive" it has exclusive access to all my pictures videos files etc.
---Knows about my appointments. Syncs automatically with my phones calender.
-- Google map on my phone knows to the nth decimal place my longitude and latitude.
---Knows the apps I have installed , when I use which I use. Consequently knows my interests.
---and to top it all, this euphemistic Blog post about Google is written on a platform that is being provided to me by Google.
---Because the whole android OS is Google based. May have access to important personal private confidential and classified data that I may have on my phone regarding personal financial or societal life.
Google has me. More so than the Matrix had Neo . and I am a consumer( like many others I would say) who actually uses ALL these things I have mentioned above. There are still other things that it offers but I dont use them and have not written them down.
The reader may be thinking that oh but thats nice to have all the information in one place which is accessible just with one account and I used to think the same. but this. this is getting too much now. I need other websites to take control of my life as well. Long live Mark Zukerberg.
p.s As a sidenote Google has that Google Plus as well. thank God people havent started using that as much as facebook. Add that and an individuals dependence on Google will be complete.
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