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Is this the catalyst for change away from those companies, or just another passing bout of enlightenment that will be forgotten by the masses by the midterm ele

Is this the catalyst for change away from those companies, or just another passing bout of enlightenment that will be forgotten by the masses by the midterm elections?

briandear 9y ago
My dad and probably your “normal” relatives probably don’t care what Woz thinks. I stopped using Facebook, but nobody else I know actually cares. I’m in anecdote-land, I know, but honestly, the general public is addicted to Facebook. This isn’t a MySpace analog — MySpace was a playground of the fickle young. Once Aunt Edna is on Facebook, it’s going to be hard to dethrone. Aunt Edna was never on MySpace, so it was much easier for that platform to crash. It’s also sad and hilarious to me that people have said they’ll stop using Facebook, instead they’ll use WhatsApp or Instagram. Same horse, different fleas.
- briandear 9y ago
  As an addendum, I find it strange that people are “deactivating” their accounts. What does that even mean? Facebook still has your data and you are still being tracked. Unless millions actually delete their account (and Facebook actually DOES delete it,) nothing will change. Unless I can query the Facebook database, how do I know anything is actually deleted? I find it hard to believe that anyone can actually get a confirmed deletion from any social service. We are trusting that delete actually means deleted.
  - dublinben 9y ago
    As you point out, there is no difference between "deactivating" and "deleting" your account, because Facebook doesn't delete anything. Either one is just a statement that you will no longer use Facebook. Anything that hurts their MAU numbers is an effective protest. Just look at their stock price in the last month.
  - 908087 9y ago
    Under GDPR, Facebook will be facing some serious trouble if they try to continue the not-really-deletion deletion thing, so at least there's some hope for those who reside in Europe on this front. That said, even for those who are in countries like the US, deactivation and ceasing "engagement" with Facebook is still at least one step better than continuing to actively feed them data.
    - mnsc 9y ago
      This is the reason I haven't deleted my FB yet, I'm going to send so many letters this June! And then I'm going to be joyously forgotten for real! And then I'm going to send more letters to see how forgotten I truly am! GDPR = Get Damn Priers Rekt
m-p-3 9y ago
Most likely the second, because when the media jump on their next topic the average user will switch back to apathy.
908087 9y ago
When Trump got elected, I was hopeful that it would result in the many people who were asleep at the wheel on surveillance-related issues (among other matters that self-described democrats were willing to ignore as long as "their guy" was in office) during the Obama presidency finally waking up. Hopefully it sticks, but I'm giving it maybe a 25% chance of doing so, ironically due to the ADD-like attention span social media has cultivated across society.
coldacid 9y ago
Hopefully the former, but given how most "normal" people tend to respond to these things, most likely the latter.
rm_-rf_slash 9y ago
Was Edward Snowden the catalyst for change away from tolerating government dragnets? No, not enough to insist on “liberty [from dragnets] or death”, but it sure made a lot of people more aware about the spying powers of major govnerments on the devices people use every day. The toothpaste of paranoia cannot go back inside the tube of ignorance. This is that same moment for the private sector. Sadly, as another poster mentioned, people will scathe Facebook and go to Instagram or WhatsApp instead, changing nothing.
- bogomipz 9y ago
  >"Was Edward Snowden the catalyst for change away from tolerating government dragnets?" Wait when were government dragnets ever tolerated? We are talking about things that undertaken in absolute secrecy. Was there legislative change taken in response? No or certainly nominally. Was there a change in the publics attitudes? Yes, absolutely. See: https://www.recode.net/2015/3/16/11560290/snowden-leaks-have-changed-how-americans-see-their-privacy https://www.recode.net/2015/3/16/11560290/snowden-leaks-have... Change isn't always instant and immediate.
bogomipz 9y ago
I think its too early to tell. I do think however that change will happen when or if people decide FB is not a company they want to work for. That despite a CEO who wears t shirts, the free gourmet meals and fro yo its just "megacorp" with questionable practices.
Shivetya 9y ago
I am not sure we have to wait that long, the masses may have never actually cared. We live in a world where many just shrug and accept what happens because they believe its the only possible outcomes. on sites like HN and even reddit are but a bubble

Is this the catalyst for change away from those companies, or just another passing bout of enlightenment that will be forgotten by the masses by the midterm elections?

briandear 9y ago

My dad and probably your “normal” relatives probably don’t care what Woz thinks. I stopped using Facebook, but nobody else I know actually cares. I’m in anecdote-land, I know, but honestly, the general public is addicted to Facebook. This isn’t a MySpace analog — MySpace was a playground of the fickle young. Once Aunt Edna is on Facebook, it’s going to be hard to dethrone. Aunt Edna was never on MySpace, so it was much easier for that platform to crash. It’s also sad and hilarious to me that people have said they’ll stop using Facebook, instead they’ll use WhatsApp or Instagram. Same horse, different fleas.

briandear 9y ago
As an addendum, I find it strange that people are “deactivating” their accounts. What does that even mean? Facebook still has your data and you are still being tracked. Unless millions actually delete their account (and Facebook actually DOES delete it,) nothing will change. Unless I can query the Facebook database, how do I know anything is actually deleted? I find it hard to believe that anyone can actually get a confirmed deletion from any social service. We are trusting that delete actually means deleted.
- dublinben 9y ago
  As you point out, there is no difference between "deactivating" and "deleting" your account, because Facebook doesn't delete anything. Either one is just a statement that you will no longer use Facebook. Anything that hurts their MAU numbers is an effective protest. Just look at their stock price in the last month.
- 908087 9y ago
  Under GDPR, Facebook will be facing some serious trouble if they try to continue the not-really-deletion deletion thing, so at least there's some hope for those who reside in Europe on this front. That said, even for those who are in countries like the US, deactivation and ceasing "engagement" with Facebook is still at least one step better than continuing to actively feed them data.
  - mnsc 9y ago
    This is the reason I haven't deleted my FB yet, I'm going to send so many letters this June! And then I'm going to be joyously forgotten for real! And then I'm going to send more letters to see how forgotten I truly am! GDPR = Get Damn Priers Rekt

m-p-3 9y ago

Most likely the second, because when the media jump on their next topic the average user will switch back to apathy.

908087 9y ago

When Trump got elected, I was hopeful that it would result in the many people who were asleep at the wheel on surveillance-related issues (among other matters that self-described democrats were willing to ignore as long as "their guy" was in office) during the Obama presidency finally waking up. Hopefully it sticks, but I'm giving it maybe a 25% chance of doing so, ironically due to the ADD-like attention span social media has cultivated across society.

coldacid 9y ago

Hopefully the former, but given how most "normal" people tend to respond to these things, most likely the latter.

rm_-rf_slash 9y ago

Was Edward Snowden the catalyst for change away from tolerating government dragnets? No, not enough to insist on “liberty [from dragnets] or death”, but it sure made a lot of people more aware about the spying powers of major govnerments on the devices people use every day. The toothpaste of paranoia cannot go back inside the tube of ignorance. This is that same moment for the private sector. Sadly, as another poster mentioned, people will scathe Facebook and go to Instagram or WhatsApp instead, changing nothing.

bogomipz 9y ago
>"Was Edward Snowden the catalyst for change away from tolerating government dragnets?" Wait when were government dragnets ever tolerated? We are talking about things that undertaken in absolute secrecy. Was there legislative change taken in response? No or certainly nominally. Was there a change in the publics attitudes? Yes, absolutely. See: https://www.recode.net/2015/3/16/11560290/snowden-leaks-have-changed-how-americans-see-their-privacy https://www.recode.net/2015/3/16/11560290/snowden-leaks-have... Change isn't always instant and immediate.

bogomipz 9y ago

I think its too early to tell. I do think however that change will happen when or if people decide FB is not a company they want to work for. That despite a CEO who wears t shirts, the free gourmet meals and fro yo its just "megacorp" with questionable practices.

Shivetya 9y ago

I am not sure we have to wait that long, the masses may have never actually cared. We live in a world where many just shrug and accept what happens because they believe its the only possible outcomes. on sites like HN and even reddit are but a bubble