Thanks to Professor Beilin’s lecture on February 6th I was introduced to something that I was not aware of called the google filter bubble in which an individual’s personal search is tailored to what he/she has searched for in the past. This type of profiling is in a way supposedly showing the person searching for information things that google thinks the person wants to see as opposed to giving a list of items for the individual to choose for himself. We are being forced by an algorithmic program into obtaining information that it thinks we want and not showing us the rest of the information when in fact we could be searching for something completely different then what the search engine throws at us. And the thing that’s the most messed up out of all of this is that the algorithmic program considers 1 PC unit as a person but imagine what that would mean if there are 5 persons living in 1 household all using the same computer, it would mean the search would be improperly tailored to provide search information to each member of the household in turn throwing off their ability to acquire adequate information. I believe this is wrong and that google should not put us into this bubble and keep us isolated and unable to acquire the truth/information we seek.
You might (or might not) be surprised to know that Google has yet another way of isolating us specifically. Their web browser, Google Chrome, lets Google users sign in and sync any and all information, not just confined to Google searches, but every website you ever access. And it isn’t just their browser, their Chromebooks operate on a higher level, mandating that you register and sign in or you can’t use them.
It is not just Google that is doing this to us, every time you download an app for your phone or Ipod you have to agree to give it access to some sections of your phone you deem may be irrelevant to the app itself. Example did you know that the Facebook app for your phone requests access to the text messaging system on your phone. That means they could very well have access to and be able to read our text messages. In the end we have as the consumers have to be the responsible ones and weigh the pros and cons. I don’t blame the corporations I blame our growing need to have everything handed to us on one plate.