What does digital sovereignty mean to you?
A few months ago, in one swoop I deleted my Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram accounts. The Facebook application suit has brought me a lot. As a user I found new friends, knowledge, insights and as a customer, it generated business for me. For that, I am grateful to Facebook the company.
Over the years, I grew concerns over its abuse of power. However, in a way, that is inherent to large organizations and therefore perhaps even unavoidable.
I have always been wary of privacy. In my view, I took more protective measures than the vast majority of users and that somehow alleviated my concerns. It was only after learning the deeper intricate technical workings of the applications that I realized there was very little I could do to protect my privacy.
And then this year, Facebook, as many other tech giants, significantly increased their censorship. This was for me the reason to remove myself completely. I could no longer justify it to myself: by using these applications, I am also condoning its censorship practices.
I am a strong advocate of free speech, no matter how ridiculous people’s opinions may sound. Especially in times like these, different perspectives need to be heard, if it were only to rationally and empathically understand WHY people agree or disagree with certain measures. Censorship, by removing voices and pushing only one narrative, is very dangerous in many, many ways.
I know that other platforms, YouTube (Google), Twitter and even LinkedIn are censoring to various degrees. I am currently in the rather painful process of deciding what to do with these. It has large consequences for me both personally and business wise, some even unknown. It is a price I am willing to pay for my digital sovereignty.
In a short time, I have learned a lot. I am more than happy to share my experiences, views, mistakes, and alternative solutions, especially for businesses. If interested, please let me know.
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