People have always dreamed about a future when technology will make everything better. Robots and self-driving vehicles work for humans. People spend more time pursuing art and other leisure activities. It sounds like a utopia, but things aren’t as pretty as they sound.
There are several signs that point to an increasingly dystopian future. Over the years, both technical experts and commentators have cited them as problematic. They concern both advanced and established technologies. Here are five cons of such a rapid tech surge and how to deal with them on a daily basis.
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Constant Surveillance
Back in 2014, Amazon unveiled its smart home assistant product called Amazon Echo. The device was promised to be a valuable tool for everybody. People could ask it to google valuable things like “write my coursework,” listen to weather forecasts and their favorite songs. Pretty soon, other companies have produced their own versions of the speaker.
Over the years, people realized that these speakers were listening to a bit more than what was being said. Amazon admitted this and claimed that it collected to improve the devices. It seems fine at face value. But, many don’t appreciate the fact they can’t control the type of information gathered about them.
In 2016, Arkansas acquired data from Amazon that was used against a suspect. It could be argued that this type of information can be shared with third parties – but there’s no way companies need such volumes of user data. For example, in 2018, an Amazon Echo device shared a private conversation with a man’s employees.
It may seem that only smart speakers spy on their owners. But, many Americans feel concerned about their smart devices. They track what they say even when disconnected from the internet. If these issues aren’t addressed soon, users may have to turn to older technology.
Unstable Autonomous Vehicles
People have been talking about self-driving vehicles for decades. Thanks to Tesla, Uber, and other companies, there may be no need for drivers in the future. Despite a generally positive attitude, people are still concerned about security issues. Compromised cars can be used to steal personal information. Some experts suggest that hackers can hijack car controls.
It will be decades before self-driving cars become mainstream. But, they are becoming more common in countries across the world. In most cases, semi-autonomous vehicles need to be constantly connected to the web. When connected, they send out sensor data and metric readings to the cloud.
Car manufacturers do their best to ensure that nobody can hack their products. But, as previous gadgets have proven, there’s no such thing as a completely safe device. Both major corporations and small businesses have their client data stolen through malware. Just last year, hackers stole information from the United Nations computer network.
The Rise Of Deep Fakes
When deep fakes became available, people looked at them as outstanding technology. They required vast amounts of visual information and a powerful computer to set up. The more people in a video, the more power is needed. In the past, deep fakes tried to destroy the reputation of celebrities and politicians. This is no longer true with current technology.
Now anybody with an internet connection can make their own fake video. There’s also no need to provide the system with hundreds of videos and photographs. It only takes several social media pictures and a short video to create a realistic deep fake. There’s a strong security concern. These videos can be used to bypass facial recognition software.
Research at Sungkyunkwan University established that hackers already use deep fakes. They can break even the best facial recognition software. In theory, anybody with a short video of you talking can get access to any device in your possession.
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A Growing Lack of Privacy
One of the concerns about modern technological progress is a growing lack of privacy. What’s even worse is that corporations and government organizations normalize this. It’s becoming more evident that the right to privacy is being slowly eroded. And what is more disturbing is that most people don’t seem to mind.
Recent surveys show that 13% of web users are ready to give up personal data. In return, they want free access to online content and services. In the past couple of years, governments tried to enforce user privacy. For example, California introduced the Consumer Privacy Act, and Europe passed the GDPR. But, none of them actually forbade commercial organizations from collecting personal data.
They only made it mandatory to get permission from a person. That’s why almost every website has a popup asking users to accept cookies. This resulted in people getting tired of confirming permissions each time they visited. Most users blindly agree to every data and cookie request; they don’t check what kind of data is being requested.
A Stronger Disconnect From Reality
When the Matrix first came out in 1999, it had many people question if the world was real. The film described a bleak future. In it where people were inside a huge virtual reality machine. Things like Facebook’s Meta and other VR worlds will have more people replace the real world with a virtual one.
Recent developments show that the predicted future will become real sooner than later. An increase in VR and AR technology may make a world that’s even more disconnected and isolated than now. Not to mention the health risks that will surely come out of the woodworks with enough users. Mental health issues are just one of them.
While AR and VR technologies offer excellent educational opportunities, their downsides are too many to ignore. Perhaps a sensor that locks people out of virtual reality will balance things out. Otherwise, they can get lost in the virtual world and never return.
Conclusion
There’s no denying the progress that was made across all mentioned technologies. But, there are many things to work out before it becomes safe to use. Corporations and governments should spend their resources and time wisely – they have to make their products safer, more predictable, and privacy-oriented for all their users.
