Advanced technologies like emotion detection, affect recognition, neurotechnologies, and XR are increasingly encroaching upon our private lives, raising substantial concerns about personal privacy. These technologies delve into layers of our existence that were hitherto inaccessible, thereby threatening to erode our personal boundaries and inner selves.
As these technologies capture and digitize multiple aspects of our lives, they heighten concerns around data protection. Our age-old legal frameworks see privacy mostly through individualistic lenses, but such technologies carry implications that extend far beyond the individual, impacting groups and society overall.
Take extended reality (XR) technologies, for instance. They merge the virtual world with the real one, collecting biometric identifiers, real-time location data, and audio-video recordings to map and model spaces; a clear indication of how personal and collective privacy concerns are intertwined. An XR device gathers an individual’s voice, iris, and pupil movements, gait, location data, and more. These technologies, designed to alter or extend reality, are incrementally infringing upon personal privacy and security.
Moreover, XR technologies elevate the risk factor for non-users and those interacting with the XR user in both virtual and physical worlds. Always-on recording devices and cameras are prone to capture images, movements, and voices of unaware bystanders. Insufficient laws or regulations to govern such scenarios further elevate the potential risks.
However, the voyage into the metaverse carries deeper apprehensions than traditional privacy challenges. These technologies are potent tools, capable of manipulation and discrimination depending on the reality presented to individuals. The possibility of being coerced into decisions or behaviors against one’s best interest is alarming. Existing phenomena like algorithmic systems for personalization and behavioral targeting could be further amplified by XR technologies, magnifying the filter bubble effect.
Distinct perceptions of reality based on individual attributes such as gender, race, or socioeconomic status presents direct threats to personal autonomy, human dignity, choice, consent, and self-determination. These values, central to functioning democratic societies, are in peril due to the unchecked proliferation of such technologies.
Elizabeth M. Renieris, a renowned law and policy expert focused on data governance and the human rights implications of new and emerging technologies, culminates these thoughts in her new book “Beyond Data”. She advocates for comprehensive reassessment and regulation of these disruptive technologies, underscoring the need for collective action against the mounting privacy challenges of the postdigital world.
Source: Coindesk
