oh i’m sure it is, and that’s what i think is so insidious about it. the tactics we’re seeing emerge appear to be carefully engineered so as to disproportionately exhaust those who care the most about preserving privacy so we just pack up and leave the platforms for them to ravage.

the average person who hears about proposed “web integrity” protections is going to think nothing of it and do nothing about it, then paint you as a conspiracy theorist for being as concerned as you are. i remember preaching to people about SOPA years ago, and was met with a resounding “meh”. they want the watchdogs specifically to leave their platforms, so that there is no one left to sound the alarms for everyone else.

for real. it’s been extremely disconcerting watching both companies and nations erode and distort privacy norms so blatantly in the past few years. i’ve never really been a paranoid person, but it’s starting to feel like a coordinated effort to cut the metaphorical brakes so that when we approach the next digital privacy rights crossroad, we are completely unable to exert any control over the direction that society moves.

it used to be that i would hear about an attack on digital privacy once every year. now it seems to happen almost daily. it’s exhausting and worrying all at once.