Inigo Alexander: U.S. 'Walking Towards Authoritarianism' by Not Reigning in Big Tech

In recent years, concerns over digital data mining and violations of online privacy have become an increasing concern within both public and political spheres. Governments have been found to questionably employ data collection raising concerns over the increased surveillance it can afford governments, and the impact the practice may have on the democratic process and the broader geopolitics spectrum.

Global tech giants like Facebook and Google have also been denounced for their management of users' private data - which is often sold to third parties for tailored advertising purposes - as fears have grown over privacy breaches. These concerns are meticulously explored in Privacy is Power: Why And How You Should Take Back Control of Your Data, by the philosopher Carissa Véliz. The book exposes the ethics of how corporations and governments exploit data, and how users can obtain greater protection.

Privacy is Power is being reissued in a paperback format on January 25, with an updated introduction and afterword by the author. Véliz is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Philosophy and the Institute for Ethics in AI, and a Tutorial Fellow in Philosophy at the University of Oxford's Hertford College.

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