3 Real-World Examples of How the Dark Side of Technology Can Make Your Life Harder – Big Times
Everyone says that our life has become easier thanks to technology but, is it always the case?
As a cybersecurity expert, and now tech writer, I have spent over 20 years in the IT industry. I have seen technology come and go, participated in exciting projects, and I have learned tons of new things. However, I also had more than a glimpse of the bad, and the ugly of every single tech tool I got in contact with.
At the time, it did not bother me too much. I stayed away from the tools that, from my perspective had more cons than benefits, and that was it. But in recent years, things have gone downhill. I started noticing that the amplified, negative effects of some new technologies extended far beyond their users. Not using the tools was no longer enough.
Here, I will give you four first-hand examples of what I have found out. “Tested” on my own skin.
1. 5G and EMF
I still remember the first time I experienced on my own skin the impact of 5G/EMF radiations. What I felt was so intense that I will never forget it. That day, I had to attend a four-hour cybersecurity training held at a building near my office owned by the same company.
Two hours into the training, I was already feeling dizzy and had a horrible headache. You know, the kind of headaches that make it difficult to keep your eyes open. I thought I was just hungry since I only had a light breakfast, but as time passed, things got worse.
I struggled to concentrate. I could not think clearly. I looked around to see if anyone else was feeling sick, but all the others looked perfectly well. Or so it seemed. I started feeling nauseous, and at one point, I thought I was going to throw up. I had never felt like that before.
As soon as the session ended, I rushed to the door and dragged myself toward the train station. It was merely a 15-minute walk. To my relief, the more I walked, the better I felt. When I reached the train station, all the symptoms were nearly gone.
The next day, I walked in front of the training building again and noticed a big antenna on its roof. The training room was exactly two floors underneath it. I immediately thought about 5G. Could that have been the reason why I felt so sick?
Once in the office, I asked around and found out that the company was progressively migrating all its buildings to 5G. Since then, every single day, I endured eight hours of headaches, nausea, dizziness, and brain fog.
Then, a few weeks later, the pandemic farce started. We were told to work from home. Again, all the symptoms disappeared. Fast forward a few months, and when we went back to the office, I decided I had to do something.
I resigned and moved to the middle of nowhere. Since then, I had no more nasty headaches.
Was it worth it? Absolutely. Was it hard? You bet it was. And it still is. But it probably saved my life.
2. The Social Media Profiles
As a freelance writer, I spend a lot of time looking for new clients, pitching new ideas, and sending my CV around. In the past few months, I noticed that several potential clients were requesting candidates to indicate the link to all their social media profiles.
Their explanation? They said they want to ensure that whoever they hire has social media profiles aligning with their values and image. In other words, if any of your profiles include something not in line with the accepted mainstream thoughts, you are done. You are not going to get the job. No matter how good you are.
3. No WhatsApp or Smartphone? No Job, Baby
This is another issue people without a smartphone may encounter when looking for a job. But what does a smartphone or WhatsApp have to do with employment? Let me give you a couple of examples. To increase the possibility of earning enough to meet month’s end, I also tried to teach languages online. As I have given language lessons before, I thought: "Why not?". I sent a few applications, and two potential customers got in touch.
The first one, wanted me to have a smartphone to access specific areas of their online language classes tool with a QR code. For security reasons, of course. It is always for your safety and your own good. Yeah, right. It does not matter if QR codes are easily exploitable and less secure than your good, old password. All that matters is that you do not have a smartphone. Thank you for applying but, goodbye.
And then there is WhatsApp. The second potential customer dropped the ball as soon as I told him I was not prepared to get WhatsApp. All appointments with language students were set up via the tool they said. Therefore, sorry. Nothing we can do.
OK, in this case, I did not need a smartphone. I could have easily installed WhatsApp on my laptop. But this was not the point. WhatsApp is a pure surveillance tool. Once installed, everything you have on your device is shared with whoever has access to it in the background. Think I am too paranoid?
Telegram founder Pavel Durov stated in a recent interview that WhatsApp has always been a surveillance tool. Not that I trust him. Funnily enough, Telegram requires users to have a smartphone to register so, he is part of the same game. However, what he says about WhatsApp makes sense.
Kaspersky warned that one single call made on WhatsApp, even if unanswered, can give full access to your phone to attackers.
Bitdefender and many other security providers confirmed the issue too.
4. Tell Me What You Write About, and I Will Tell You How Prone to Compromises You Are
OK. This one is based on personal choices. Some writers write just about anything. "Just pay me, and I will write everything you want, about any topic. No restrictions." If you are not one of them, the number of work options you have are dramatically reduced.
In the last four years, I have seen too many people filling their mouths with noble ideals. Many were saying that they were fighting for good causes, but in reality, they were doing the opposite.
Several condemning Big Brother-style actions and the Green Pass were the same who were recording their speeches with their smartphone. The same tool that made both surveillance and the green pass possible.
How ironic uh? Talking is easy. Anyone can do it. Putting what you preach into action is another story. But not everyone wants to be like them. Some do not want to write about things that they do not agree with. The problem is that nowadays all those topics are the most requested.
Pharmaceutical, digital currency, climate change, whatever gender propaganda, you name it. There are tons of jobs out there for those willing to write about those subjects. Content writers are also highly requested to train artificial intelligence (AI) - or artificial stupidity, as I often call it. You could make over $20 per hour just to chat with AI. Easy money, right? But at what price?
Final Thoughts
So, there you have it. Technology can be a blessing and a curse making life even more complicated for those who are not willing to compromise.
My soul is not for sale. What about yours? Would you sell it for convenience or short-term benefits?