2018 was an eventful year – Falcon Heavy reached space, Kim Jong-Un met several global leaders and Facebook somehow lost $109 billion of its market value overnight. Each of the aforementioned made history, but arguably the most interesting is the third. When you think about it, $109 billion is a colossal amount, equaling the combined wealth of Sri Lanka and Nepal. Translated to demographic terms, it’s proportional to losing 4 million people in one day. What could’ve happened? The answer is data mining.
Data mining is an interdisciplinary process involving machine learning and statistical analysis to observe large-scale patterns in sets of data. Despite being one of the most effective tools for firms, it is widely considered unethical because of its potential to affect individual privacy.
An example of data mining used unethically is the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica scandal of 2018. Facebook gave Cambridge Analytica (a political consulting firm) the personal data of 87 million people. Cambridge Analytica then used the data to segment users into categories and create political propaganda specific to those groups. In turn, politicians used the company’s services to influence the 2016 American presidential elections, the Brexit vote as well as the 2018 Mexican general elections.
This is obviously unethical! Facebook users had their data sold to a third party for propaganda to be created, on a national scale.When this information was publicly outed in March 2018, it became a hot topic. Facebook lost $109 billion overnight, because people were understandably outraged. One of the largest companies in the world was exploited for the benefit of a select few.
The recently-imposed US visa requirement for social media details also uses data mining. Artificial intelligence, using machine learning, sorts through online profiles and classifies them based on their interactions. This threatens free speech, by screening potential applicants based on opinions they’ve expressed. But why is data mining so effective? It’s quite simple.
Today, firms need consumers. Firms would disregard individual liberties and rights if it meant greater profitability. They are willing to invest to achieve greater profitability. Data mining ticks all three boxes. It can be unethical and can infringe on individual rights, but it’s also profitable and effective because there hasn’t yet been time for governments to pass legislation limiting it. That said, it is important to note that data mining isn’t necessarily bad. Functionally, it is the acquisition of information. If information were a screwdriver, one could use it either to turn a screw or to puncture a skull. A tool is never inherently good or bad; rather, its usage is the determinant.
If used correctly, it has the potential to quicken responses to consumer trends, tell companies how to market their products and even improve consumer satisfaction. As a combination of technical innovation, marketing Amazon’s success can partially be attributed to data mining – using the purchases and search history of users with similar interests, its data engines create recommendations personalized to consumers. This vastly improves user experiences because it appeals to an individual’s interests.Data mining is also a source of convenience for consumers. Google’s search algorithms use the process to filter results so that they’re likely to be what you’re looking for. Without it, search engines would probably be far less accurate than they are today, and finding your favorite shoes on Google wouldn’t be so easy. Ultimately, it comes down to personal opinion, and as such, will vary greatly. Depending on its usage and the person making a decision, data mining could be considered either ethical or unethical. Personally, I think it isn’t the worst thing in the world, solely because of how much of a technological boon it is, but I understand the repercussions it could have on privacy rights. What do you think?
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