22/03/2018
There has been a lot of debate about the use of social media tools by organisations, trying to sway the electorate in Presidential elections, Brexit and more besides.
I can understand the frustration being felt by many, especially when the influence is coming from outside of the country whose citizens are making the decision*.
However, are they really surprised?
If they are, is this simply a case of naivety?
Outside forces have been using whatever tools they can to influence elections and other individual choices long before the introduction of social media.
Newspapers, celebrities, lobby groups, businesses, ex-politicians, friends, family, employers and more have been using their influence for as long as would be possible to examine.
If Cambridge Analytics have acted illegally in what they have done, they should of course face appropriate charges. If what they have done is legal, but of questionable morality, we should challenge them to clean up their act.
However, given how freely people share information online, none of us should be surprised this is happening.
It should be no surprise that Facebook explores ways of making money. They do not charge us to use the service, in spite of various scams suggesting they 'are about to' over the last few years. They employ over 25,000 people, a number that has been rising by thousands a year, and these people need to be paid.
It should also be no surprise that others are trying to make a living through social media, such as Facebook, or to enhance their business income or profitability.
Facebook has been used by fraudsters to deprive money from innocent (sometimes naive) people. I have alerted many businesses to threats to their reputation by fake Facebook profiles, and also reported these to Facebook themselves.
There have been many 'hate groups', such as Britain First, the EDL and others who have used Facebook and Twitter as a platform for spreading their hate. Posts filled with lies have been shared by these groups, who have seized on the opportunities provided by social media.
So why do people seem so surprised that companies such as Cambridge Analytics have used tools to obtain information and sell that information to people who would use it to sway elections?
It is wrong. Of course it is.
It should, if at all possible, be stopped. Without a doubt.
But, when people are still falling for 'like farming' scams and being taken in by phishing emails, posts, text messages and phone calls, it is hardly surprising that they are also having their data used for illegitimate purposes.
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