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[return to "EU data regulator bans personalised advertising on Facebook and Instagram"]
1. pembro+eb[view] [source] 2023-11-02 11:52:38
>>pbrw+(OP)
Ok, my contrarian hot take (for HN at least). The real entities we need to be afraid of in regards to privacy are governments & politicians, not companies & entrepreneurs.

The worst thing a company can do is try to sell you more soap. The government on the other hand can literally ruin your life (or even end it in some countries).

The EU is doing a fantastic job of keeping everyone distracted by pointing the finger at the "evil American tech companies" while simultaneously doing the opposite when it comes to privacy from government...which is the real threat.

I could point to many instances of this but the easiest one is the EU commission currently pushing a ban on encryption.

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2. LightH+ud[view] [source] 2023-11-02 12:03:55
>>pembro+eb
When you realize that large enough corporations are a form of government, your way of thinking really starts falling to bits...

But, the government is the solution to when business gets too much power. You can't convince a profit motivated corporation to stop doing something evil as long as it's profitable, so it's the government's job to protect people from corporate governance.

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3. pembro+Sh[view] [source] 2023-11-02 12:31:42
>>LightH+ud
> the government is the solution to when business gets too much power.

I totally agree with this. But are personalized Facebook ads really an example of this?

And what's the solution when the government gets too much power? Especially in a "democracy," when the people have implicitly given approval for this by voting in the people who are attempting to consolidate power?

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4. fsflov+xi[view] [source] 2023-11-02 12:35:28
>>pembro+Sh
> But are personalized Facebook ads really an example of this?

Yes:

Facebook proven to negatively impact mental health (tau.ac.il)

>>32938622

Facebook collecting people's data even when accounts are deactivated (digiday.com)

>>29817297

Facebook test asks users if they're worried a friend is 'becoming an extremist' (cnn.com)

>>27714103

Testimony to House committee by former Facebook executive Tim Kendall (house.gov)

>>24579498

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5. hartat+ko[view] [source] 2023-11-02 13:08:01
>>fsflov+xi
All of this are far from material harms. Compared to what governments can do and are doing.
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6. kibwen+Yr[view] [source] 2023-11-02 13:27:48
>>hartat+ko
Not only is Facebook a tool of oppressive governments, Facebook's own annual revenue is larger than the GDP of 2/3 of the countries in the world. I don't understand why people have this blind spot when it comes to giving corporations a pass on things that they'd criticize a government for. Most corporations are expressly authoritarian organizations, more so than many governments. Neither Facebook users nor Facebook employees can vote Zuckerberg out.
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