Is social media turning us into zombies?

The hard-hitting documentary trending on Netflix—“The Social Dilemma”—begins with eerie music and a chilling quote that alludes to social media as a curse. In this, several executives who held top positions in social media companies such as Facebook, Google, and Twitter warn about the existential crisis caused by these manipulative organisations.

It hits us hard with several facts we are unaware of or continue to ignore. The covert aim of the ‘free’ platforms is to monetise social media use. They constantly track, collect and analyse data on every facet of our lives. The advertisers on social media misuse this data to predict and influence buyers’ behaviour. We, the unaware users, are the products being bought and sold. It is a market trading in “human futures”.