Is the WhatsApp vs Signal / Telegram conundrum the beginning of an ambiguous Tech world?

Welcome to the next level of tech supremacy. We have now entered level three of the technological adoption where we do not inquire if a service is worthy or not, but hunt for options to switch over from a perceived unethical or faulty provider.

Level one was the euphoria of entering the digital world. We gleefully sharpened our motor skills with the variety in technology, albeit being clueless on what to truly do with them. Level two was the emergence and dominance of a single large player in a category amongst technology and information exchange.

The ascendance emerges from a foggy yet latent backdrop, where the layman is unaware of the technological changes. What is the implication of a policy alteration and how it will affect him? Level four is what I foresee would happen. I shall explain it later. Until then, let us comprehend level three of the technology shift we are witnessing and what might unfold.

The current plot

Here’s the challenge that lies ahead – for us fairly tech savvy corporate blokes and the rest of world. What is exactly changing at WhatsApp? We are, as usual and for obvious reasons reading and hearing multiple commentaries and conspiracy theories around this development. The company has clarified its statement as opposed to what is largely being perceived by users.

It said that user data before 2016 was not shared. However post 2016, data of its now 2 billion customer base was shared with Facebook. Customers had the option post 2016 of not sharing their information with Facebook. They could opt out within 30 days of signing up. As part of the policy update now, the option has been taken out for customers. Nevertheless, if you had opted out, WhatsApp will continue to honor the choice. The company quips the policy update is only a reflection of how data was shared with Facebook since 2016.

So, the billion plus users WhatsApp added since 2016 always had their data shared with Facebook. Facebook however reaffirms, that the messages always carry an end-to-end encryption and they have no access to that data. However, it does access user information, usage pattern and so on. This is an understandable confusion which we are all staring at. But there are deeper questions.

Here they are

If the adoption of a competitor service zooms overnight by an insane number on the grounds of privacy, what lies ahead for other majors who have been flouting privacy norms? Can multiple competitors emerge in days with the computing prowess today to take over? I feel that is plausible. We can therefore look to more competitors in each category offered. Could this however, deepen our confusion?

Also, my 72-year-old dad barely manages to use WhatsApp. I dread walking to him and break the news of how he is been spied upon and he has to learn using something else? The misery worsens if I start asking him to do this for every app he has signed up with. How are the lesser tech savvy folks dealing with this? Do they agree to have their privacy breached and maybe become irrelevant to the hi-tech policy updates? Did the policy deliberately factor this and pushed to go ahead?

The next question is, whom do we assume to be the flag bearer of privacy and good deed in the higher echelons of the tech world? The visionary founder or the investors who keep funding an idea. The founder might promise adequate protection of information, but will that please investors when the return on dollar does not add up?

Even if the visionary holds to this value, will he display enough grit in the boardroom? What if he is sacked for being an impediment to the stock surge? We have enough evidence of our past to understand data collation, crunching and mining for profit is what keeps the big tech going in this age. What stops any growing firm to not adopt that route once they have the people’s verdict in their favor with respect to adoption?

Furthermore, the emergence of a liberator app that answers for the obvious problem need not be competent with other issues. It may guarantee privacy, but is the security for the app robust too? Is it not easily hackable ? We are building an iron gate to secure our perimeter, but what if the entire establishment is on a marshy land that caves in easily? We are uncertain if the solution offered can pass the litmus test on the ‘Dark Web’ and offer a seamless experience.

My final question is – what stops a technology behemoth to overtake emerging ‘me too’ apps and integrate into one service offering? We have seen this happen in the past. Such dominance of a single operator can be ominous to say the least, especially with a mass product or service. We do not see monopolistic regulations exercised fully on these complex business models yet. Regulators on the other hand too are having a hard time in comprehending the architecture of these establishments. Oh, and by the way, the founder of Signal is the same guy who invented WhatsApp and sold it to Facebook. In case you did not already know about it.

What are the solutions?

The answers to the above questions are beyond a single service operator. We must try to comprehend this world shaped on the tech canvas . We cannot resist or challenge it, but we can definitely try to understand it better. To start with, we must question the need of a service or technology in our lives.  How much of it do we need, what will it impact and what are the alternatives available. A herd mentality will always create a dominant player. Secondly, get a gist of people and forces that control the strings behind the curtains. Go beyond mainstream media to comprehend the undercurrent of a policy change. At times, you would discover there is only smoke without fire!

Wake up to the fact that a large part of our behavioral data is available with tech corporations whose services we currently use. Nevertheless, we need to demarcate the data that we are ok with to have on these servers versus which must be held as confidential. It is one aspect to circulate information for knowledge or entertainment or tell them I am a Kardashian fan. It is a whole lot different to circulate critical and personal data which reveals any of your identity on social media platforms. Bank account details, Credit Card details, PINs, Passwords, PAN numbers, Aadhar numbers, SSNs and the likes.

Personally I have enough reasons to believe that a substantial amount of my data and behavioral attributes are already available with the service I am using. I do not foresee a future where our data can be kept discreet. Technological marvels will push the envelope and make it extremely difficult to resist. We however need to question the providers on proof of data used is with clear permission.

These structures are highly complex to decipher and will create enormous ambiguity amongst us with time. The current issue is just the spark that will light up the arena. We can only hope that corporations present these in the most transparent manner possible. For the fourth level of ascendance could very well be the formation of new GODS out of apps and services. As we pray to our GODS today for our safekeeping, we might soon worship the apps and technology who prove to be better guards of our data. As mentioned earlier, we can only hope this is horribly wrong.