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I don't think it's just that. I don't have any fear that any individual will film me, since this probably happens frequently anyway (how many strangers have me

by kvb 13y ago

I don't think it's just that. I don't have any fear that any individual will film me, since this probably happens frequently anyway (how many strangers have me in the background of their pictures somewhere?). Nonetheless, the idea that there will eventually be cameras everywhere putting videos online, combined with technologies such as location-tagging and ever-better face recognition, means that in the not-too-distant future it may be possible for someone to retroactively stalk me by splicing together bits of lots of different videos, determining exactly where I was throughout my day. While it's possible that the benefits of these technologies outweigh the costs, it's not too hard to dream up dystopian scenarios.

pavel_lishin 13y ago
Not only will someone be able to retroactively stalk you, they'll be able to cut together their own version of reality. Imagine someone having every snapshot of you while you're having a bad day - scowling at a slow elderly person ahead of you on the stairs, flipping someone off while driving, a really bad photo of you with a bunch of drinks around you. Nevermind that you were trying to hurry to get up the stairs to help your pregnant wife, or that someone threw a brick at your car, or that you're just watching your friends' drinks while they play pool.
- jonkelly 13y ago
  Exactly, the "Mark Burnett problem" (producer of Survivor). I heard him claim in an interview that with enough footage he could create any perception of a person that he wanted (hero, jerk, brilliant, idiot, etc.). It seemed obvious after hearing it, but not something I had considered.
  - seren 13y ago
    This can be seen as a modern incarnation of the famous (apocryphal?) Cardinal Richelieu's quote : "If you give me six lines written by the hand of the most honest of men, I will find something in them which will hang him."
seren 13y ago
"We informed you that under the new Citizen Bill of July,2040 we have revoked your right to vote, and travel without permit because you have been identified as a participant of the antisocial demonstrations of May, 2018." I know this sounds paranoid, but given past behaviour of totalitarian government, I don't see why any future techno-totalitarian society would not use that kind of tools. And my example is rather mild, it could be something much more sinister that travel restrictions... This is one the reason I find the "Right to be Forgotten" a sane idea.
- maxerickson 13y ago
  I really, really hope that if the world becomes a totalitarian hell hole I am not left fretting over my right to travel.

by kvb 13y ago

pavel_lishin 13y ago

Not only will someone be able to retroactively stalk you, they'll be able to cut together their own version of reality. Imagine someone having every snapshot of you while you're having a bad day - scowling at a slow elderly person ahead of you on the stairs, flipping someone off while driving, a really bad photo of you with a bunch of drinks around you. Nevermind that you were trying to hurry to get up the stairs to help your pregnant wife, or that someone threw a brick at your car, or that you're just watching your friends' drinks while they play pool.

jonkelly 13y ago
Exactly, the "Mark Burnett problem" (producer of Survivor). I heard him claim in an interview that with enough footage he could create any perception of a person that he wanted (hero, jerk, brilliant, idiot, etc.). It seemed obvious after hearing it, but not something I had considered.
- seren 13y ago
  This can be seen as a modern incarnation of the famous (apocryphal?) Cardinal Richelieu's quote : "If you give me six lines written by the hand of the most honest of men, I will find something in them which will hang him."

seren 13y ago

"We informed you that under the new Citizen Bill of July,2040 we have revoked your right to vote, and travel without permit because you have been identified as a participant of the antisocial demonstrations of May, 2018." I know this sounds paranoid, but given past behaviour of totalitarian government, I don't see why any future techno-totalitarian society would not use that kind of tools. And my example is rather mild, it could be something much more sinister that travel restrictions... This is one the reason I find the "Right to be Forgotten" a sane idea.

maxerickson 13y ago
I really, really hope that if the world becomes a totalitarian hell hole I am not left fretting over my right to travel.