The Mythical Choice Between Privacy and Convenience

Image by TechGenix

The debate surrounding bulk user data-collection procedures and the subsequent use of such information rages on. With the recent backlash over the data-gathering capabilities of the app known as TikTok, however, the Western world is suddenly grappling with the thought that this app might in fact be a tool used by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to spy on citizens on a global scale. Although this idea has been around for a while now, the Canadian federal government effectively banned TikTok from all of its governmental devices in late February, justifying its decision as a response to a potential cybersecurity threat. 

The twenty-first century is indeed a data goldmine. In a world where multinational corporations as well as governments continuously invest in their capacity to gather data to offer better services and adapt to global markets, it is no surprise that a state as powerful as China wants a piece of the pie. With the recent takedown of what was identified as Chinese spy balloons over North America and high-profile claims of Chinese interference in the 2019 and 2021 Canadian federal elections, the ban represents a clear attempt by Canada to curb China’s thirst for power. 

That being said, the current media outburst over TikTok’s potential use as a spy tool by China focuses overwhelmingly on the way that collected data might be used, not how it is collected in the first place. In other words, the issue lies in who (in this case the CCP) uses that data, as opposed to the actual means used by the CCP to do so. The goal here is not to downplay the fact that the app is used by a foreign totalitarian government bent on changing the Western-led global order to its own image, but rather to illustrate that the methods used by Western societies to deal with the looming threat of mass data surveillance are fundamentally flawed.

Banning TikTok from government devices is, for national security reasons, a necessary and unquestionably effective countermeasure. On the other hand, any social media platform (elsewhere than in China) gathering massive amounts of user data all over the world leaves governments particularly vulnerable to foreign surveillance and interference. After all, since data breaches or scandals involving the selling of personal user data to third parties have become quite common, does that not pose just as big of a security risk?

First, here is a short story of TikTok’s rise as one of the most popular social media apps in the world. TikTok was officially launched in 2018 as a social networking service by its parent company, ByteDance, which is headquartered in Beijing. Mirroring its domestic counterpart known as Douyin (which is only available to Chinese citizens), the app allows users to create and share very short videos complete with music and special effects. In less than two years, TikTok already had up to a billion downloads worldwide, and Canadians were charmed by the app in the same way others from around the world were. The problem, experts agree, is that the app can collect an enormous amount of user data; data it does not necessarily require to run and function as it should. Indeed, “TikTok’s data collection methods include the ability to collect user contact lists, access calendars, scan hard drives including external ones and geolocate devices on an hourly basis.” Furthermore, the app can monitor exactly how individuals use their devices, namely by identifying their keystroke patterns or how they use their audio devices. If this seems somewhat exaggerated or speculative, just read TikTok’s official terms of service, it is all there. 

Given that this data could potentially be accessed by the Chinese government at will, Canadians’ everyday lives (which, before last February included federal employees) are in fact an open book. 

Still, what many media outlets fail to emphasize is that typical online platforms like, say, Facebook or Google, have many of these same functionalities. It has long been known that Google’s many services (YouTube, Maps, Gmail) store users’ data to draw a highly-detailed portrait of them, which allows for precise ad-targeting. For instance, Google still scans emails within Gmail to send the data to other services like Maps, or use it to design ads. Facebook’s sophisticated algorithm looks at what content users look at, for how long, the messages they send, and even what apps they use whenever they login using their Facebook account. 

Luckily for social media enthusiasts, Google and Facebook (and to a certain extent TikTok as well) offer the option to limit the collection of such data by removing permissions deep within the settings section. 

The data that these companies do get their hands on, though, is far from being safe. Data breaches and scandals involving the sale of personal data have become all too common. In 2018, the infamous Cambridge Analytica scandal caught Facebook illegally selling the data of over 87 million of its users to the data-analytics company, which it used to support Trump’s election in 2016. Google is no better. That same year, the search giant accidentally exposed the data of as many as 50 million Google+ users until the service was shut down for good. These are only two of the most famous examples. 

Thus, even with TikTok banned, foreign governments will certainly not lose sight of all that data that Canadians willingly put online. Stronger privacy laws and social media regulations are certainly a solution, but history teaches us that technological innovation is like a tidal wave: we can only control it to a certain extent. This is especially true considering that the use of artificial intelligence by companies like Google to improve their services is right around the corner. 

This is why the top priority should be to educate individuals on how to properly use social media and be mindful of the data they share online. Here in Quebec, media literacy is about to officially enter the school curriculum as part of the new “Quebec Citizenship and Culture program” at the elementary and high school level. However, this is far from being enough. 

Similar to the way the federal government launched the Digital Citizen Contribution Program in 2020 to fight disinformation, federal, as well as provincial authorities, should attempt to promote responsible data-sharing practices among the general population. It is mind-boggling that there exists no major initiative in Canada that has the sole purpose of educating Canadians to become more conscious of the data they put online. Broadly speaking, one solution could be for provincial governments to generate incentives for the private sector to create workshops or educational programs aiming at raising their employees’ consciousness of proper privacy practices. 
In sum, although banning apps having ties to foreign totalitarian governments or coming up with stronger privacy laws are both necessary solutions to counter foreign mass data surveillance, having more responsible citizens is also key. Social media is highly convenient in today’s fast-paced world, yet individuals should not have to choose between privacy or convenience: there is and must remain a way to achieve both simultaneously. In order to do that, it is crucial that any 21st century citizen learns to properly navigate the information age and the eventual onslaught of artificial intelligence.