Microfiction #5: As a resistance tactic, darkfields
“As a resistance tactic, darkfields were considered one of the most effective protections for individuals under surveillance capitalism. Developed by two hacker-activists, darkfields were open-source packages that you could load onto phones, watches, even digital jewelry; when enabled, the darkfield prevented your data from being collected by receivers in online or physical spaces. Other ‘invisibility cloaks’ attempted similar aims, but darkfields were unique: rather than blocking data capture, they offered streams of synthetic data that concealed your activities while poisoning the receiver’s datapool. Collectively, they were so toxic to commercial datasets--especially as darkfields proliferated within oppressed (i.e. most-heavily-surveilled) communities--that the Company brought aggressive cybercrime lawsuits against anyone caught deploying a darkfield. Eventually the developers accepted a settlement that privatized darkfield tech under the Company brand, permitting deployment against ‘unannounced’ data collection (in practical terms, Company competitors). The developers claimed it was a righteous compromise, but investigative reporting found that they received USD$300 million each in the deal.”
--Excerpt from “Insatiable: A History of the AI Wars,” by Ahmed Raadje (MacHarper and Schuster, 2051)
I’m Jenny. I research and write about people and technology.