t does seem to be getting harder and harder to even keep up with new technology. There will always be those people who manage to keep abreast of the news, always one step ahead of the game, and we’re sure they will always look down on us mere mortals. However, for most of us, the fast-moving world of tech is starting to get – dare we say it? - a little too fast.
This is by no means a wholly bad thing, as technological progress coming at such rapid speeds shows just how much innovation there is out there. We can also see that in recent times technological innovation is no longer just coming from a few powerhouses, the US, EU, China, and Japan for example, but from allover the world, as centres of research and development pop up in all sorts of places, some quite unexpected. We’ve seen India, South-East Asia, EasternEurope and LATAM establish their own innovation hubs and develop their very own start-up ecosystems.
There is, however, a good chunk of our society that just seems to be getting left behind by all the new trends. Usually among the older in society, those who haven’t grown up with rapidly changing tech, seem to have some difficulties keeping up to date with the ever-changing way we interact with tech.
Is this their fault? Not really. Should we be helping them keep up? Yes of course! They are still an important powering force in our society and economy, and more often than not they’re that family member who will be slightly confused by their phone and come to ask for help, and we should of course give them the help they need.
It’s not just the small things that the less tech-savvy are sweating about, as concepts such as data privacy, net neutrality, and data bias will be foreign terms for many people. The trend towards the privatisation of data for example has been a massively worrying one, and one that will be of particular interest to those who have a vested interest in the global trends of tech. The main qualm that people seem to have is that the dignity and privacy of individuals is being jeopardised by corporations looking to monetise said data.
People are, understandably, worried that their private data is no longer private, questioning what is data security and why it is important, particularly to them. They are tired of 100-page terms and conditions which hide clauses that give companies access to their private information. This has developed into a larger movement with the best data security companies working hard to make the intricacies of data privacy much more accessible for the less tech-savvy.
Another cause that many are ready to fight for is that of net neutrality, which is yet another case of corporations attempting to profit from the growing dependence on the internet for work and personal life. It would allow internet providers to treat certain websites and users in a different manner to others, usually based directly on the amount of money that they are paying.
This has mostly been a matter of great debate in the US, where financial lobbying of the authorities has led to corporations gaining a very concerning amount of control over the relevant legislation. Thankfully, the situation in the UK has been much better, but we’d much rather be aware of the cyber security risk and have the chance to prepare accordingly, rather than be surprised when it rears its ugly head on our shores. Having a grasp of the best security firms and top vendors is a helpful start.
On the whole, technological progression over the last decade has been a massive success. Our world is more interconnected than ever, and the sciences have made massive strides towards technology that we would have perhaps coined a sci-fi dream not long ago. The “working from home” solution to the coronavirus pandemic simply wouldn’t have been feasible with the technology from a decade ago. The working world is a very different place thanks to technology, and we will hopefully be seeing even more innovation in the coming years.
Adversity does, after all, breed creativity, and these are indeed adverse times.