Cu29 Design Lab

(How to) Breakup with Big Tech!

Introduction

You, and everyone you know, are the victims of a con coordinated and enacted by the largest and most powerful tech companies in the world.

Big tech's stranglehold over our data (and our society) might seem inescapable, but that is a fiction underwritten by billions of dollars worth of lobbying and propaganda to preserve the status quo of big tech monopolies. The truth is that their position of power, while great, is far from unassailable and it starts with everyday people taking a stand against a morally and ethically bankrupt business model.

The titans of Silicon Valley are in the process of ushering in an age of digital technofeudalism on a global scale and your data is the "new oil" that has made these modern day robber barons the wealthiest men in the history of our planet. Understanding that YOUR DATA is what built their digital empires, gives you a pretty good idea of what it will take to unmake their power and wealth.

Stop giving them your data.

Why

Your data is valuable, and these tech companies know this better than anyone. That is why all of their "products" and "services" in one way or another tend to operate as vacuums to hoover up not only your data, but also your time, attention, and deliver micro-targetted ads to sell you over-priced junk you don't need (or want).

On the secondary market, "data brokers" offer legal (if extremely unethically harvested) data compiled from whatever datasets they can get their hands on and are more than happy to sell people's personal data by the millions to the highest bidder. In this "data economy" you are a commodified line on a spreadsheet detailing all of the most valuable information that the modern digital surveillance panopticon has been able to amass on you.

Breaking up with big tech means starving the entire industry of the thing they crave most, and the thing they deserve least; Access to you and your data.

Who

If getting away from big tech feels a bit like trying to leave an abusive partner, you are far from alone. It can feel daunting to disconnect from these corporations when so much of your life takes place on their platforms where all of your friends and family are. Tech companies are actually counting on this phenomenon (known as "network effect") to keep you (and all your friends) trapped on their platforms where they can abuse you endlessly.

Breaking up with big tech isn't a solo endeavor, it is a group activity!

Yes, it sucks that you are having to fight for basic human dignity, but misery loves company so throw a big tech breakup party with your friends and family. Help everyone you can to escape the vile clutches of the Zuckerbergs, Musks, and Bezos of the corporate internet.

Do not allow Silicon Valley CEOs to run a tollbooth between you and the people you care about. Y'all need to team up and kick them in the nads.

In the best case scenario (which we should all be trying for) the shift away from big tech will create its own reverse network effect. As these mega platforms (continue to) hemorrage users, they will become less and less useful to remaining users further driving the exodus to greener pastures.

What

There's no one perfect way to breakup with big tech, but in broad strokes:

This isn't a one and done effort, but instead a long-term commitment to taking and maintaining ownership over your data and continually defending your privacy against bad actors. Every little bit you can do to chip away at big tech's influence in your life is a victory worth celebrating.

Where

Places you should be trying to leave (a.k.a. "Big Tech"):

Alternative places you should consider exploring:

Places you should go for more options:

When

There is truly no time like the present.

How

Take the Cyber Cleanse from The Opt Out Project.