→ Enough to Make You Paranoid

No one’s watching us.
They just know us inside out

People say, “You’re paranoid.” Do me a favour. Just look around. Take your phone. It knows where you are, what you look at, what you buy, what you search for. Even what you want. It knows your habits. It knows how long you linger on something before moving on to the next thing.

But no, no. Nobody’s watching you. Of course not. They just know you extremely well. Almost intimately, really. Perfectly normal.

It reminds me of some bloke following you down the street for twenty minutes and, when you finally turn round, saying, “No, no, I was going this way anyway.” Right. Naturally.

The other day, I’m talking about holidays with my friend Louise. I say, quite casually, “I wouldn’t mind going away somewhere.” Two hours later: hotel ads, flights, holiday rentals.

Now, as far as I remember, I hadn’t told my phone anything.

Although…

It’s a bit like sleepwalking. After a while, you’re no longer entirely sure whether you’ve been talking to someone, to your phone, or to the coffee machine.

Then someone says, “Oh, no, that’s just the algorithm.”

Ah.

Well, that’s all right then.

So nobody’s listening. It’s simply a machine that knows what you want before you do.

Much better.

It reminds me of a waiter bringing you dessert before you’ve ordered it. At first you think, how efficient. Then you start wondering how he knew you fancied chocolate mousse.

And it’s always the same. They know what you look at, what you buy, where you go, what you want. And soon, I imagine, what you’re about to want.

But no. Mustn’t be paranoid.

Nobody’s watching you.

They just know you inside out.

Think about it.

It’s all there to make your life easier.