19 December 2018 07:55 UTC
I don’t necessarily agree with the conclusion of this article, ‘“Owning your data” will not save you from data capitalism’ but I think it makes a few particularly useful points:
- “Owning” your own data can imply the ability/desire to sell it. It shouldn’t.
- It’s not just information about us as individuals that is valuable, the connective and meta data conveying our relationships to others is arguably more valuable.
- Plenty of data about us can be inferred without data specifically about us (see above.)
- Consent is impossible when you do not know how your data can be used against you.
Perhaps saying “owning and controlling your own data” (a phrase we use a lot at Ind.ie) is misleading. We use it because, right now, corporations do own and control data about us, and so it makes sense that the inverse is that we (individuals) own and control that data. Maybe the emphasis should be on control. Maybe there are better words.