Book Review: Machine Readable Me by Zara Rahman

404 Ink's "Inklings" series are short books with high ideals. This is a whirlwind tour through the ramifications of the rapid digitalisation of our lives. It provides a review of recent literature and draws some interesting conclusions.

It is a modern and feminist take on Seeing Like A State - and acknowledges that book as a major influence. What are the dangers of static standards which force people into uncomfortable boxes? How can data be misused and turns against us?

Rather wonderfully (for this type of book) it isn't all doom and gloom! It acknowledges that (flawed as racial categorisation may be) the state's obsession with demographic data can lead to useful revelations:

in the United Kingdom, the rate of death involving COVID-19 has been highest for Bangladeshi people than any other ethnic group, while all ethnic minority groups face higher risks than white British people.

This isn't to say that data shouldn't be collected, or that it can only be used in benevolent ways, but that without data all we have is guesswork.

We undeniably live in a stratified society which is often (wilfully) ignorant of the rights and desires of migrants. Displaced people are often forced to give up their data in exchange for their survival. They are nominally given a choice but, as Rahman points out, it is hard to have high-minded ideals about data sovereignty when you're starving.

Interestingly, she interviewed people who collect the data:

In fact, some people responsible for implementing these systems told me that they would be very reluctant to give away biometric data in the same way that they were requesting from refugees and asylum seekers, because of the longer-term privacy implications.

I slightly disagree with her conclusions that biometrics are "fundamentally unfair and unjust". Yes, we should have enough resources for everyone but given that we don't, it it that unreasonable to find some way to distribute things evenly? I recognise my privilege in saying that, and often bristle when I have to give my fingerprints when crossing a border. But I find it hard to reconcile some of the dichotomies she describes around access and surveillance.

Thankfully, the book is more than just a consciousness-raising exercise and does contain some practical suggestions for how people can protect themselves against the continual onslaught against our digital privacy.