Author of Be Ready for Anything and Bloom Where You’re Planted online course
(Sept. 27, 2018) Have you heard about China’s dystopian new “social credit” program? If you haven’t, there’s a terrifying infographic from Bored Panda that I’ll be referencing throughout this article.
The good news is that this is happening in China, where we all know a Communist government has long been crushing freedom for the residents of the nation. You may think this doesn’t affect you because you’re in America, gosh-dang-it, but we’ve seen over and over again how a “great idea” in another country, no matter how dystopian, can spread like a viral contagion.
The bad news is that it is incredibly close to happening here. Heck, it is happening here.
Don’t believe it’s already happening? Let’s take a look.
Here’s some information about data collection in the United States.
We all know that our data is being mined and sold to the highest bidder all over the internet. A while back, I was looking for a new rental for the time that our lease runs out. I got some emails from landlords from Craigslist, made an agreement with one of them, and then the very next day, a utility company that I had never contacted sent me a creepy email reminding me of the length of time ahead I needed to schedule relocating my service.
Everything you do online is scanned and sent to people who will profit.
photo credit: Josh Reynolds – Bored Panda
So what if someone on Facebook, Twitter, G-Mail, Yahoo Mail, Outlook, and everyplace else on the internet was collecting every single thing you typed, everything you read, and everything you searched up?
What if all that stuff got combined to create a picture of you, your beliefs, your moral convictions, and the way you think?
photo credit: Josh Reynolds – Bored Panda
Don’t delude yourself into thinking that this will only be limited to China. This is something that will spread based on its “effectiveness.” Effectiveness at what?” you ask. Effectiveness at predicting your every move, from likeliness to pay a bill or honor a contract, to who you will most likely vote for in the next election.
There’s a reason that Mark Zuckerberg had to go to Congress and sit on a stack of books and testify. It’s because the information he has harvested and sold is so incredibly, horribly detailed. When you read the following infographic, you’ll see where I’m going with this.
photo credit: Josh Reynolds – Bored Panda
This information is already being collected in the United States. You are tracked everywhere you go when you are online.
There’s very little you can do about it, but here are some options.
- Use browsers that are not Google Chrome. These are said to be the most anonymous browsers. (Remember that “secure” browsers will still track you.)
- Use search engines like Duck Duck Go and Startpage. (Here’s a list of search engines that don’t track you.)
- Use encrypted email. Here’s a list of some of the most secure services. (Proton Mail is the ONLY system that the NSA can’t get into and I’m in the process of switching over as much as possible.)
Of course, a lack of available information can also make you look sketchy in the eyes of those who wish to snoop. You know the old adage, “You have nothing to worry about unless you have something to hide.” Well, that’s not really true anymore. Privacy is important.
photo credit: Josh Reynolds – Bored Panda
Right now, in China, the program is optional. But as more and more service providers join in, it will become more difficult to avoid. We see the same thing happening here in the United States. I literally went for almost a decade with no phone whatsoever. No cell, no landline. When people would ask for a number and I said I didn’t have one, they all thought I was lying. Finally, my phone number or lack thereof became such a detriment that I was forced to get one to be able to participate in things that were important to me.
The same thing is true of bank accounts. Over the past 20 years or so, with the advent of direct deposit and direct withdrawal, you simply cannot function in this country without a bank account. Then, of course, the banks are able to help themselves to a hefty fee from everyone and all the money in and out can be tracked. Good times.
Apple, by the way, is already giving people “trust scores” based on their phone calls and emails. Just in case you think I’m being far-fetched.
Here’s how this will be “sold” to any country adopting the practice.
It will make life “easier.” It will make things “cheaper.” After all, if you’re a “good” person, it won’t be a problem, right?
photo credit: Josh Reynolds – Bored Panda
How nice. Well, maybe.
But what if you run into a rough spot? You like an unpopular candidate or political philosophy? You are the voice of dissent? You homeschool instead of sending your kids to public school? You have some money problems? You have “too many” children? You think your friends are being idiots about something and you try to help them see the error of their ways through discourse?
Oops. Not so good anymore.
photo credit: Josh Reynolds – Bored Panda
And that’s just for starters. Things could really, really go downhill from there. Welcome to rationing registration, and restriction in every single facet of life.
It could easily turn into a situation in which you can no longer function, have money, or be employed unless you toe the digital line.
photo credit: Josh Reynolds – Bored Panda
That social aspect in the photo above? We’re already seeing this in spades in America since the last election. How many people lost friendships over politics? How many families saw strained relationships over the candidates? How many people now think their former friends are complete morons? How many people actually lost jobs and promotions and work buddies over it?
Take that to the next level. What if your popular opinions could ruin your life? A lot of folks would be much less likely to speak out if this happened. And dissent is the American way. Our country was quite literally BORN from dissent.
Here’s an example of how this could go bad if you find yourself on the “wrong” side of the political fence. If you get Blacklisted, suddenly everything you’ve worked for and built all your life is GONE.
photo credit: Josh Reynolds – Bored Panda
If you don’t think it could happen here, you need only to look at Alex Jones. I don’t like him much, but he’s lost everything because some companies got together to ban him. He’s lost all his social media accounts. He’s lost his email list. He’s lost his ability to accept PayPal. I assure you it’s only a matter of time until he can no longer accept credit cards. If he can’t finance his business and can’t reach people on social media, he is completely silenced. If my site costs a couple thousand a month to operate, his would cost exponentially more with his populous staff of writers and the server capacity he’d need for all the traffic he gets.
You don’t have to like or support Alex Jones to see the broad, sweeping arm that took him down. None of us with a public profile is immune.
I wrote more about the social media purge here. Just because it doesn’t directly affect you or you’re not on social media doesn’t mean that it won’t have an effect.
photo credit: Josh Reynolds – Bored Panda
Insidious bills get stealthily passed all the time while we are distracted by ridiculous things like the Kavanaugh hearings and the Kardashians and the Kaepernicks of the world. People are freaking out about football while algorithmic governance is creeping up, unchecked.
You can find that episode of Black Mirror on Netflix. It’s terrifying because you could honest-to-goats see it happening.
Start distancing yourself from “the system” as fast as you can. And then, fight this crap tooth and nail. We, the good people of America, have raised our voices before on things that we see as injustice and we’ve won.
This is the fight of our lives. This is the fight FOR our lives. If this goes down on the scale that it is in China, the ONLY recourse would be pulling the plug. Ending the system altogether and going back 200 years in time for a do-over. No more grid, no more system.
I hope it never gets to that, but I’m far from optimistic.
Sounds horrible, dystopia.
Likely will be pushed hard during the next financial collapse.
Best to avoid social media, I never got on it. Businesses can advertise free which is fine. I use private search engines. I do have free google voice but seldom use the phone or text on google. Mostly business type calls like appointments or calling a business about item available. No hope for future generations, glad we never raised kids. We are retired. I suggest people freeze their credit in all four agencies. It takes time, but peace of mind from hacking. If anyone wants to check my credit I have a credit card at the credit union. I don’t plan on financing anything anyway. We live in a lawless society and no one gets thrown in jail for hacking large companies, gov. agencies, credit cards, or retail stores. Open borders means turning us into a third world country like Europe.
Laura Ann, I like your suggestion. How do I “freeze” my credit? I thought there were only 3 credit reporting agencies. What is the 4th? Appreciate your response, if you can find the time. Thanks.
I’d argue that a social credit system is already operating in the U.S., but it’s not (yet) officially orchestrated by the federal government. I never used social media because I worked in high-profile public relations jobs, and had I posted one politically incorrect opinion, my career would have been ruined and I might have been unable to buy or rent a home. There have been many cases of a person posting an unpopular opinion to Twitter or Facebook which resulted in the person losing their job and living in fear of stalking and physical assault. I say bring on the EMP. I am ready to go back to the nineteenth century, before the invention of electricity made this Orwellian nightmare of surveillance possible.
I too welcome the EMP’s…bring it
Now that I think of it, the Bill Hicks show Disinfowars just might have been designed from the beginning to be one of the first “alt” media outlets to be censored. Please observe these videos of Bill Hicks and Disinfowars;
This video records the interaction between a disinfowars employee and law enforcement, where the law enforcement officer apparently notes a time warner identification card and asks the disinfowars employee about it, said employee then explains he works for Bill Hicks and disinfowars;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7t4WQwVqVjs
In this video we see Bill Hicks try to take over a 2nd amendment rally from the patriots who planned and promoted it;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3s0vAwsBNc
I mean come on, he snuck into bohemian grove?
I think they let him in because he’s one of them.
They’re laughing at all the people who fall for Bill Hicks and disinfowars.
If you aren’t already aware, check out MyLife.com. They are already doing this for a profit. I know someone who was a high school teacher who said they needed to subscribe to this to be aware of what students and others were saying about them. It’s here now. MyLife even periodically emails me that they have criminal information about me when it turns out to be a minor traffic citation, a civil infraction. Just a scam to get you to subscribe for a monthly fee.
Derek, I was at a friend’s house who had recently subscribed to some information service (criminal information). I plugged my name in and received a long list of things i’d never done. The name was the same as mine, but I never lived at any of the places where she lived, didn’t know the same people, never worked at the same jobs, etc. It wasn’t me. Yes, I believe they are scams.
Awesome article Daisy! Simple and clear. Yes it is Orwellian and plays into Biblical prophesy as well. I have been in the information science end of things since the 70’s starting with how not to pay for duplicative R&D that has already been done so one can bridge off of the previous work to advance faster. With the growth of the massive computing systems and more sophisticated algorithms we have arrived. We can see this in the focused ads that come up even though we have only once searched for something. Keep up the good work. Best piece yet!!
I agree.
I watched that episode of Black Mirror-Nosedive with my teen daughter and told her how easily that could happen here. It’s frightening how tied these teens are to their phones and social standing. Adults, too. I’m reducing my social media footprint as much as I can.
Some people boast about how awesome TSA pre-check is. I just shake my head and think of how convenience is taking over common sense or security for some.
The lower your “score” in this world, the higher in the next!
The banks and the government (just about the same thing) know everything about you. Check your credit wit the major credit reporting bureaus and see for your self. I was working at Intel in New Mexico and had to have a security clearance. The security gave me a mile of paper work to fill out asking questions as far back as grade school. I told them that this was impossible and I couldn’t answer most of these questions. The head security officer printed out all my information and answered every question. She said just sign here.
The information they had on me was just unbelievable. It really made me mad as hell and weary of the government. Intel is highly classified and is patrolled and fully armed with full auto m16s by the military, in case you didn’t know.
My clearance was top level and allowed me to go anywhere in the plant and allowed me to go to any Intel facility throughout the world.
Did you quit on the spot when you found out? Did you protest in any way? Did you try and stop any of it? So what exactly did YOU do?
Or did you do like most, sign on the dotted line, say thank you and continue your career and receiving your paychecks and now boasting about such high clearance….
We as employees know in some form what is wrong with this but not many step back and say shove it because we love our jobs or got bills and families or a sick relative or the many other “good” reasons we participate. Only when enough walk out and say shove it will things change. Otherwise this type system will destroy all of us in the end.
You morons should be ashamed of yourselves for even posting an article like this. Why don’t you all go blow it out your a*ses ! This crap is NEVER coming to America, so don’t go banking on it. Americans will fight this tooth and nail, unlike the poor Chinese who just gave up immediately to the powers that be. You try this crap over here and we will shoot you all DEAD.
Ease off the caffeine Julie.
I wish you were correct. I hope you are, truly.
I read an article stating a growing number of American youth support Socialism. That’s where someone else makes decisions for you. Another stating there’s a significant number of young people willing to give up their right to vote, if the government takes care of them. Health care and such. Then there’s the middle aged, and older people in favor of Socialism. Again The Government decides. Government knows best, so don’t complain except when the Government does not provide.
Facebook; Ohhh, I’m not getting a lot of thumbs up emojis and no hearts what so ever like THAT guy did. I need to change up on what I say, to gain a greater approval, I need validation from others to feel good about myself.
At a restaurant, four 20 somethings place their desserts on the table then sit down. All pull out a phone, snap a pic, then start typing away. They sat for a minute, ignoring one another, while they attempted to get approving likes on their posts.
I personally do NOT like the China program, neither do you.
But if I get hearts, and laughing emoji replies, the interest on my loan drops, I can get tickets to “Hamilton”, I can …. and besides, I never really “liked” that lady I met at Prep Club, she was a flake, I guess, oh wow discount tickets to Disneyland and California Adventure, it pays to unfriend stupid people.
I am afraid it is inevitable.
I don’t know what happened to my reply to Julie but perhaps Julie had better watch this Special Report: Has China Taken Over America? America fighting to resist Communist China’s massive influence https://www.infowars.com/special-report-has-china-taken-over-america/
Daisy Luther: I am sorry that you don’t like Alex Jones. For years he has been the one on top of the deep state while others are just jumping on the buss.
Hi, Seagate! I don’t despise him or anything. His approach is just not my cup of tea. He has definitely provided some good information over the years.
Thanks for the link!
Leftist troll in the dungeon…
Daisy, this is one of your best ever articles. Let me add one little tidbit to it. The same Google that long ago abandoned their “Do no evil” motto and that has helped the communist Chinese develop their tracking of people who run searches for “forbidden” subject matter is the same Google that links such searchers with their HOME PHONE NUMBER so the Chinese government can penalize and punish such dissenters.
Has anyone noticed that Google’s Gmail system often asks users if they want to “volunteer” their phone number “in case there’s some problem accessing their Gmail account”?
Does it creep you out to realize that Google is asking you to hand over the same information that the communist Chinese government uses to punish dissenting online searchers in their country?
No one has abused data collection more than candidate Ted Cruz. See:
Not Trusted? Ted Cruz Mobile App ‘Cruz Crew’ Aggressively Siphoning User’s Personal Data ? Now The End Begins
Ted Cruz campaign using firm that harvested data on millions of unwitting Facebook users | US news | The Guardian
Anita Hoge — Cruz’s Unethical Profiling of Americans
Ted Cruz campaign using firm that harvested data on millions of unwitting Facebook users | US news | The Guardian
Cruz-Connected Data Miner Aims to Get Inside U.S. Voters’ Heads – Bloomberg Politics
Cruz campaign credits psychological data and analytics for its rising success – The Washington Post
Its already here.Check out mylife.com.
NO google for me. Nor facebook etc.
And still wired.
DuckDuckGo for browser.
Also never click in to take a poll, blahblah..
Kids tell me i’m a troglodite.
and proud of it!
Get off social media, at least the big ones like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube. Don’t use Google’s products whatsoever.
I don’t even have a smartphone. No one in my family does.
Do things off-line. Don’t put your whole world and life online and on your computer. Talk to people in person, read physical books, write things down on paper rather than using a phone or computer.
Learn to read maps and not use computers or GPS. Stuff like that.