More than ever before, we rely on technology to connect us to the world around us. In doing so, what do we risk?

Social media plays a dominant role in our lives. Whether we like it or not, it has become an essential part of our daily routine. We check our phones first thing in the morning and last thing at night. We constantly scroll through our feeds, liking, commenting, and sharing. But who is really in control of our social media experience? Are we in control; or are the giant social media companies controlling us?

Take the social media app TikTok: many people who use it are unaware of the surveillance conducted on them within it. Essentially, the iOS app can track every tap of your screen while you browse, including typed passwords and clicked links. But we’ve no idea how that data is used. It continually asks for more permissions to snoop into your other accounts, even when it doesn’t need to do so. Why would an app designed to let you watch videos want access to your G-Suite?

It's not surprising then that the UK government recently banned the use of Tik Tok on their electronic devices over security concerns, joining a growing list of other countries around the world to do this, including the USA, Australia, and the European Union. 

The governments have said they're worried China could use its national security laws to access the significant amount of personal information that TikTok, like most social media applications, collects from its users. 

Should Beijing gain access to TikTok’s user data, one concern is that the information could be used to identify intelligence opportunities. For example, by helping China uncover the vices, predilections, or pressure points of a potential spy recruit or blackmail target, or by building a holistic profile of foreign visitors to the country by cross-referencing that data against other databases it holds, Even if many of TikTok’s users are young teens like me, with seemingly nothing to hide, it’s possible some of us may grow up to be government or industry officials whose social media history could prove useful to a foreign adversary. 

This is not as far-fetched as it sounds; in China, their CBDC (central bank currency) is already linked to your digital ID. If, for example, you're caught jaywalking, a facial recognition system will immediately display your face on a public board of shame, before automatically deducting your fine from your digital wallet. This is part of their government’s developing social credit system which ranks and punishes citizens. 

But this data surveillance is not just happening on Tik Tok and in China; Elon Musk recently claimed that the US government was using Twitter DMs to secretly spy on Americans.

The truth is that social media has a huge influence on our lives, whether we like it or not. It's not just about staying connected with friends and family; it’s also about shaping our opinions and beliefs. Social media has been used to rig elections and influence political outcomes.

In 2018, Carole Cadwalladr won the Orwell Prize for her exposure of Cambridge Analytica’s use of social media to influence the 2016 US presidential election. The scandal revealed how the personal data of millions of Facebook users was harvested without their consent and used to create targeted ads for the Trump campaign. It was a wake-up call for the world, exposing the dark side of social media and the power it holds over our lives. Since then, there have been more examples of how social media is being used to control us. In the UK, the "Brexit" campaign (vote leave) was found to have used social media to target voters with misleading information. Not only this, but social media companies use algorithms to promote content that is more likely to keep users engaged. This can "trap" users in a bubble where they are only exposed to content that reinforces their existing beliefs and biases. This can make it difficult for users to see viewpoints that differ from their own.

So, who is really in control? Social media companies have access to our data, and they use it to create targeted ads that are tailored to our interests and preferences. They also have the power to control what we see on our feeds by promoting certain posts and suppressing others. This creates the perfect environment for misleading and fake news to spread and prosper if companies allow it, trapping you and influencing your views and opinions. But it's not just about the companies that own social media platforms. We must take responsibility for controlling our own social media experience. We need to be aware of the content we’re consuming and question its truth. We must be mindful of our online behaviour and how it impacts others. 

What can we do to protect ourselves? Some individuals and groups are turning to decentralised platforms that are designed to operate outside of the control of major social media companies. For example, there are blockchain-based social networks like Minds and Steemit that prioritise user privacy and allow users to earn cryptocurrency for their contributions. There are also peer-to-peer social networks like Mastodon and Diaspora, which are not owned by any company and are run by a decentralised network of servers.

Another way people are pushing back is through grassroots organising. There are movements like #DeleteFacebook and campaigns like Stop Hate For Profit that calls on companies to boycott advertising on social media platforms until they take stronger action to combat hate speech and disinformation. Beauty giant Dove has recently taken a stand against online beauty filters in a campaign against TikTok's trending “Bold Glamour” filter, and It called on its global community to turn its back on filters, inviting them to post a video turning their backs to the Bold Glamour filter and using the hashtags, #TurnYourBack #BoldGlamour #NoDigitalDistortion.

Finally, some people are advocating for greater regulation and legislation to rein in the power of social media companies. For example, there are proposals for antitrust actions to break up the monopolies of companies like Facebook and Google. There are also calls for new laws to govern the use of personal data and protect user privacy as well as efforts to update Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act which shields social media companies from liability for content posted by their users. With the upcoming general election next year here in the UK and a presidential election in the USA, we must be more aware of social media than ever before. For ages, newspapers and the people around us have influenced our opinions and ideals. However, the use of social media to manipulate us has made the influence stronger and harder to realise. It has a huge influence on our lives. It has the power to shape our opinions and beliefs, and it is being used in ways we don’t even realise. But we also have the power to take control of our own social media experience. By being aware and mindful, we can also ensure that social media is being used for good and not as a tool for manipulation.