From 0a54ff0503b0e294ed454133242659574c92973a Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Kevin Jerebica Date: Fri, 1 Mar 2024 22:15:33 +0100 Subject: [PATCH] Add "Information Scarcity" post --- content/posts/information-scarcity.md | 77 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 77 insertions(+) create mode 100644 content/posts/information-scarcity.md diff --git a/content/posts/information-scarcity.md b/content/posts/information-scarcity.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..0269d9f --- /dev/null +++ b/content/posts/information-scarcity.md @@ -0,0 +1,77 @@ +--- +title: "Information Scarcity" +date: 2024-03-01T21:55:39+01:00 +tags: ["internet", "internet_security"] +--- + +I will not be picking battles between the extreme right or left side of the political spectrum. +In fact, I will merely try to report on the negative impacts that capitalism has had on this astounding +technology, referred to as "the internet". I will also try to stay away from emotional writing, even +if such a technology lies very close to my heart. This does not mean I side with left nor right. +This means the common individual should focus more on the problem at hand and come up with the best possible +solution for that specific scenario rather than just falling onto the extreme left or right wing. + +This is especially true for developers.. + +We live in a world where money is power. That fact should not be ignored. The creation of internet was +an unexpected turn for the market. Companies realized that it was a powerful tool to gain new customers with. And +of course, how could it not be? You are more exposed to the new customers' eyes and are therefore, more likely +to make more sales and profit, right? How could have that possibly turned for the worse? + +## Data Protection + +The internet that we live in today is a mess. Service creation -> data collection -> data breach. In that order. +Service creation refers to any act of writing or shipping software for the end-user (or the end-developer depending on what you are creating). +Data collection refers to the collection of personally identifiable information without explicit or full consent from the user +(which, let's be real, is the case in 2024. Well, unless you are keen on reading the 2000 word long privacy policy for every product that you use, which +can be changed by the company at any time of the day. Without your consent. Have fun reading these vague essays). +Data breach refers to the unescapable information compromise that will happen sooner or later in the process of shipping software to a wider audience. +Production code is never 100% safe and free from security vulnerabilities. Therefore, every time a maliscious user discovers an unknown vulnerability, +a potential data breach is about to take place. The possible outcomes range from absolutely nothing to the total data compromise for the users. + +Sometimes I find myself questioning the intelect of the people who create solutions to simple problems, yet feel this internal need to surround +the solution with software rubbish. Perhaps you have noticed that many websites nowadays require account creation with a personally identifiable +email address, phone number, gender, address, and much more. Most of such websites deal with problems whose core solution is SIMPLIFICATION, yet they go the other +way around, endlessly complicating their systems over and over again until they break. And as you might imagine, the more code a product has, the more +vulnerable it is to security vulnerabilities. That is the number one lesson every developer should be aware of before starting out on their +problem solving journey. + +Not to mention the pace at which the developers are forced to work. Data protection is most definitely not the top priority for a company as much as +the process for profiting is. Developers are constantly pounded and pounded to create software as quickly as possible. Limiting them with impossibly +short deadlines and stressing them out. This most definitely leads to security bugs. + +## Rise for the Money + +Do we really wish for such use of such a powerful technology? A technology that has the potential to transmit GIGABYTES of information every second, +yet is limited by the SOS (shiny object syndrome) of humans and their will to make money by wasting processing power on +advertisements, distract the end-users with useless popups, make them fill forms, and create accounts to spam them with +new deals and make even more money? All of that while also collecting in bulk all sorts of personally identifiable information? +Just to give them the content that they needed to inform themselves? Just to accomplish the one basic idea that internet, +this stunning technology, promised to bring to the table since it ever came to existence? How did that happen? How did usage of +such a technology further push drawbacks against it? + +The approach that the first internet took, was by far the best at fulfilling what we define as "internet" - a place for +people to find and share information, not necessarily limited by race, background, actions, political standpoint, or any other form of bias. +Before the companies realized the potential of this technology and invaded it with bloat, internet was a place for individuals to share information, +get to know other people, and create something personal. Something private. Something that was a digital footprint of the community. +That footprint represented people and their will to collaborate and share information. + +However, as companies and governments got more involved, they started throwing more and more +capitalistic structures into it, which resulted in a slow death of the initial goal and reason behind this technology. + +This can be widely shown from the fact, that blogs, BLOGS, a once subjective and private online expression of somebody's persona +or presence, are now spitting blood to be the top tier result on Google's search page. That evidently puts money and power before +community, collaboration, and especially, *content quality*. Which is quite self-evident after you notice the vagueness that most +articles have online. The page fills you with popups, advertisements, forms to fill, and required login pages, just to access content +that is precooked by artificial intelligence, is extremely vague, and potentially misleading. Yes, it is indeed, a triumph for information +scarcity that is taking place on one of the biggest highways of information we currently possess. And it does indeed, show one of many +negative traits of capitalism after you throw it into a free cyber space. + +## Clapback + +Formerly, to escape this hellish use of the internet, you had to stop using the internet. Now, there is a +new world that digital rights activists and freedom seekers are creating. It is a strong and willingful movement +that has been standing its ground for many decades. It was in September 1983 that Richard Stallman launched +the GNU project, whose goal was to create a fully functioning operating system and a toolset to work with data on +that system. Today, a combination of the GNU project and Linux kernel (the core of an operating system) is known as GNU/Linux +and it is a perfect alternative to the proprietary systems like OS X or MS Windows that we do not deserve nor need.