Surveillance business model drives data exploitation, threat...

MANILA, Philippines - Chances are you've been hit by an online advertisement for a product you were searching for just minutes ago. This is among the impacts of the surveillance business model, which The Signal Foundation -- parent organization behind privacy-focused chat app Signal -- president Meredith Whittaker discussed during Rappler's 2024 Social Good Summit, held on Saturday, October 19. Whittaker, who joined the summit virtually, explained that surveillance has become central to the tech industry and artificial intelligence as we know it. Companies currently rely on advertising to understand their customers better, which now involves gathering large amounts of data on potential consumers in the pursuit of business growth and profit. "There were decisions made in the neoliberal spirit to allow internet companies to conduct mass surveillance at any level they wanted, [to get] as ...