Implications of big data for individuals (2)
Personalization and Conveniences
The most apparent data of big data is the personalized experiences that it allows. Netflix gives you a show recommendation, or Spotify chooses your playlist to Google Maps that can predict traffic. For every user identification, the processing of the past doings and the users' preferences have been made easier being that the platform gets a higher level of identification of the user.
Yet, there are also unexpected downsides to this customization. The algorithms used to have users access what they like are the same ones that will ultimately isolate them in the "echo chamber" and not be able to get in touch with different opinion or new material. Consequently, the intellectual diversity of people will drop as they continue to hold on to certain ideas, and this is especially hazardous in the fields of politics or news consumption.
Another disadvantage is that behavioural targeting can be quite annoying. The ads show up when they do, lack the users' consent, or are too invasive and thus, they do not like their existence. In contrast, these targeted messages, being personal and useful, invade one's privacy, and if the users are not informed about what, how, and when of their data is going to be used, the situation turns to be more severe.
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