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Surveillance capitalism
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<p>Surveillance capitalism is a concept in <a href="/facts/Political_economy/P753k3It">political economics</a> which denotes the widespread collection and <a href="/facts/Commodification/pQM22s1m">commodification</a> of <a href="/facts/Personal_data/384PbBg5">personal data</a> by corporations. This phenomenon is distinct from <a href="/facts/Surveillance/hJhvWdSJ">government surveillance</a>, although the two can be mutually reinforcing. The concept of surveillance capitalism, as described by <a href="/facts/Shoshana_Zuboff/JBQuIMfy">Shoshana Zuboff</a>, is driven by a <a href="/facts/Profit_(economics)/kfPA9rfB">profit-making</a> incentive, and arose as advertising companies, led by Google's <a href="/facts/Google_Ads/CNWv4Nnu">AdWords</a>, saw the possibilities of using personal data to target consumers more precisely. </p><p>Increased data collection may have various benefits for individuals and society, such as <a href="/facts/Self-optimization/nqsrxdaT">self-optimization</a> (the <a href="/facts/Quantified_self/HKrlWvrF">quantified self</a>), societal optimizations (e.g., by <a href="/facts/Smart_cities/RkmIVQC3">smart cities</a>) and optimized services (including various <a href="/facts/Web_application/BLkF3BIN">web applications</a>). However, as <a href="/facts/Capitalism/FbPc6TTw">capitalism</a> focuses on expanding the proportion of social life that is open to <a href="/facts/Data_collection/rEGBdDzj">data collection</a> and <a href="/facts/Data_processing/74EKCDAq">data processing</a>, this can have significant implications for vulnerability and control of society, as well as for <a href="/facts/Privacy/C269YalS">privacy</a>. </p><p>The economic pressures of capitalism are driving the intensification of online connection and <a href="/facts/Surveillance/hJhvWdSJ">monitoring</a>, with spaces of social life opening up to saturation by corporate actors, directed at making profits and/or regulating behavior. Therefore, personal data points increased in value after the possibilities of <a href="/facts/Targeted_advertising/SsSEgQlt">targeted advertising</a> were known. As a result, the increasing price of data has limited access to the purchase of personal <a href="/facts/Data_points/IFEDysRP">data points</a> to the richest in society. </p>