Yes, I am on Facebook. I find it very intriguing and it seems many others do. I eased in to it at first wondering just what I was getting in to. But my easing began to carry me faster than I anticipated. I found lost friends. Caught up on wonderful newsy things. I am a pastor so I saw a use to communicate my various thoughts very quickly.
My friends list grew very fast. It was amazing. I found myself accepting "friends" I did not even know. So my circle of friends became very strange. I don't why I called some of them friends. But, still it was fun.
I soon found myself saying very personal things without much thought. Sometimes it was just an answer to a question. Other times it was just an involuntary act. This personal information was growing faster than I gave thought too what I was doing. It really seemed innocent enough.
My friends list eventually reached into thousands. I really don't know how that happened so quickly except that I am a pastor and I do know a lot of people and they seem to know me.
A few weeks ago I began to read of organizations throughout the world that were gathering information about people from "social networks." This caught my attention and I read more. I researched the various organizations to try and discover just why they would want to do this.
When you talk about social networks, of course, you are talking about a number of internet groups formed for various reasons. Most where not originally organized to gain information on people. It seems that this part of their work developed as they realized there was something that could be very useful in knowing as much about people as they could possible gather.
These organizations began the process of gathering information from every "social network" that was open to them. Facebook seems to be the most popular and is full of personal information. The companies then began to put together personal profiles of individuals. Their likes and dislikes. The friends lists was easy to get. Food they liked and places they would frequent often. Their religion, their politics, their views on sensitive issues such as abortion, birth control, gay rights, and on and on it would go. There seem to be no end to what these organizations knew about people.
They then became to realize how valuable this information was. It could be sold. People would pay large amounts of money for this kind of personal information. Advertisers, political parties, products to be sold, proselytizing religions, and of course governments. Companies started making millions selling this "free" information.
The information gathering process is growing. The speed is amazing. It grows because more and more people are joining the networks. And the members who have been there are adding almost daily. While we add our information vast computer systems of these organizations are collecting, co-ordinating and making more useful the information.
Where can this be taking us as a society? I am afraid that the end maybe be terribly frighting. As I read more and more on the goals of these organizations I realize something may be going on that we can not control and certainly is not going to be good. By using systems that we could never understand they are forming personality profiles on individuals that enable these groups to predict our life style.
They can predict our buying habits; our weaknesses; our decisions before we make them.
Some companies are even predicting that in time they will be able to read our minds by using the information that we have willing given them. This could be done without our even knowing it is happening.
Should we be concern? The Bible talks about a last day world we will live in where an identifying mark will be used to control our everyday lives. A mark offered at first, but finally demanded that will already have all the information it needs to control us. To carry on our everyday business the mark will be required. A government required mark in order for it to control a world that has last its way and has become dangerous. A mark needed so they will know where the terrorist are located and what they have in mind. A mark needed because crime will have reached a stage that knowing each person will be a must. Illegal people moving from county to country will have to be controlled. On and on the reason will go for the need of this mark.
The Bible is not a book to put placed on a shelf somewhere as being outdated and of no use. It is relevant and speaks of our day as if it were written only yesterday. It warns. Are we listening?
My friends list grew very fast. It was amazing. I found myself accepting "friends" I did not even know. So my circle of friends became very strange. I don't why I called some of them friends. But, still it was fun.
I soon found myself saying very personal things without much thought. Sometimes it was just an answer to a question. Other times it was just an involuntary act. This personal information was growing faster than I gave thought too what I was doing. It really seemed innocent enough.
My friends list eventually reached into thousands. I really don't know how that happened so quickly except that I am a pastor and I do know a lot of people and they seem to know me.
A few weeks ago I began to read of organizations throughout the world that were gathering information about people from "social networks." This caught my attention and I read more. I researched the various organizations to try and discover just why they would want to do this.
When you talk about social networks, of course, you are talking about a number of internet groups formed for various reasons. Most where not originally organized to gain information on people. It seems that this part of their work developed as they realized there was something that could be very useful in knowing as much about people as they could possible gather.
These organizations began the process of gathering information from every "social network" that was open to them. Facebook seems to be the most popular and is full of personal information. The companies then began to put together personal profiles of individuals. Their likes and dislikes. The friends lists was easy to get. Food they liked and places they would frequent often. Their religion, their politics, their views on sensitive issues such as abortion, birth control, gay rights, and on and on it would go. There seem to be no end to what these organizations knew about people.
They then became to realize how valuable this information was. It could be sold. People would pay large amounts of money for this kind of personal information. Advertisers, political parties, products to be sold, proselytizing religions, and of course governments. Companies started making millions selling this "free" information.
The information gathering process is growing. The speed is amazing. It grows because more and more people are joining the networks. And the members who have been there are adding almost daily. While we add our information vast computer systems of these organizations are collecting, co-ordinating and making more useful the information.
Where can this be taking us as a society? I am afraid that the end maybe be terribly frighting. As I read more and more on the goals of these organizations I realize something may be going on that we can not control and certainly is not going to be good. By using systems that we could never understand they are forming personality profiles on individuals that enable these groups to predict our life style.
They can predict our buying habits; our weaknesses; our decisions before we make them.
Some companies are even predicting that in time they will be able to read our minds by using the information that we have willing given them. This could be done without our even knowing it is happening.
Should we be concern? The Bible talks about a last day world we will live in where an identifying mark will be used to control our everyday lives. A mark offered at first, but finally demanded that will already have all the information it needs to control us. To carry on our everyday business the mark will be required. A government required mark in order for it to control a world that has last its way and has become dangerous. A mark needed so they will know where the terrorist are located and what they have in mind. A mark needed because crime will have reached a stage that knowing each person will be a must. Illegal people moving from county to country will have to be controlled. On and on the reason will go for the need of this mark.
The Bible is not a book to put placed on a shelf somewhere as being outdated and of no use. It is relevant and speaks of our day as if it were written only yesterday. It warns. Are we listening?
No comments:
Post a Comment