More than meets the lense

Remember a few years back, Big Brother, the TV show that was a huge hit, everyone was watching it? Cameras all around, all day long, watching and recording every step the contestants made. It seemed like fun and it was terrifying at the same moment. We finally had the option to see what someone else is doing without being called a stalker or weird. But, was it all fun and games? Or was it more than met the camera eye?

Of course everyone in the show knew they were being recorded at all times, at first they were all freaked out but after a few weeks they got pretty much comfortable with the idea that an omnipresent eye is observing everything, every thing. After a while, you just get used to it, but do you really? Can you really get used to someone watching every single step you take, every breath your draw, every blink you make?

You must think it is horrible to have your every movement watched, that someone can know everything you do all the time. Sounds terrible, doesn’t it? Now, imagine that you are being watched without noticing the cameras, sounds a bit less terrifying doesn’t it? If I don’t know someone if recording me, it is as if I am not being recorded. Now that you got comfortable with that idea, imagine that at any given time you are being monitored, even now, sitting in your comfy dark room reading this.

It seems like a paranoid depiction of the world, but just look around yourself. Ever wonder why we have so many security cameras? I for one never felt safe around them, I mostly felt that my privacy was penetrated by the noisy cameras all around me. We have developed technology to make spying as easy as possible. But, who is to say that someone isn’t spying on you right now?

It starts small, a curious parent wondering what their child is doing in the confined space of their allegedly safe room, a jealous partner wondering whether you are cheating, a nosy boss eager to make the employees efficient and enslaved as much as possible. And lastly, the government taking a gander here and there, just making sure that the loyal citizens are being loyal and in no way trying to undermine their beloved country. All for the glory of Not-even-remotely-a-dictator-like-country of course! Because what I do and what I think matters as long as I do it in a way that suits everyone and is not out of the norm.

So remember, the next time someone takes a picture of you, or if someone tags you somewhere or even mentions your name, think about the privacy you have. Or haven’t.