I think that in the west, we have a different dynamic between tech and government - one that makes a huge difference.
In China, it would appear that the government is deeply involved with WeChat (which itself, is deeply entrenched in everybody's lives). This close co-operation gives them access and control to monitor their citizens - leaving the possibility of an Orwellian system.
In the west, instead, its a little bit more back and forth between tech and government. The big tech companies take advantage of opportunities they discover (for the purposes of profit) with the government subsequently cracking down on activity they deem abusive and harmful. Conversely, if the government itself seeks to spy on or inappropriately extend its reach into people's privacy, the tech companies are big enough to stand together and object to these types of intrusions. Cases such as those involving the government seeking to break into an iPhone and Apple refusing to help or with Facebook making WhatsApp E2E encrypted by default (and soon Messenger as well) are a few examples that come to mind.
With the current uproar and battle cry to break these big tech companies up, part of me feels that we might collaterally lose this balance of power between the two.
In China, it would appear that the government is deeply involved with WeChat (which itself, is deeply entrenched in everybody's lives). This close co-operation gives them access and control to monitor their citizens - leaving the possibility of an Orwellian system.
In the west, instead, its a little bit more back and forth between tech and government. The big tech companies take advantage of opportunities they discover (for the purposes of profit) with the government subsequently cracking down on activity they deem abusive and harmful. Conversely, if the government itself seeks to spy on or inappropriately extend its reach into people's privacy, the tech companies are big enough to stand together and object to these types of intrusions. Cases such as those involving the government seeking to break into an iPhone and Apple refusing to help or with Facebook making WhatsApp E2E encrypted by default (and soon Messenger as well) are a few examples that come to mind.
With the current uproar and battle cry to break these big tech companies up, part of me feels that we might collaterally lose this balance of power between the two.