From Digital Liberation to Digital Subjugation: A Short Note

From Digital Liberation to Digital Subjugation:

A Short Note on How the Digital Economy Fuels Social Unrest, Mental Disempowerment, and Psychological Depression

Rahul Ramya

30th May 2025

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I. Introduction: The Betrayal of Digital Empowerment

Human individuals and societal identities are rooted in agency—especially moral agency, personalization, dignity, and self-determination. Individuals are not a homogeneous mass; they are distinct beings whose identities are anchored in their sense of worth and autonomy.

Digital technology, through the promise of customized capitalism, initially appeared to affirm this individuality. It offered relief from institutions that had long treated people as faceless entities and reasserted the primacy of human agency.

However, this promise was soon betrayed. The very technologies that once promised dignity and empowerment became tools of commodification, control, and suppression. In the name of market efficiency and profit maximization, digital tech policies actively undermined individualism, subordinating moral agency to the logic of surveillance capitalism.

As individuals stepped into the digital realm, they left behind digital footprints—traces of their behavior, preferences, and identities. Rather than protect these footprints, tech policies chose to store them, trade them, and ultimately weaponize them. These intimate traces were turned into tools to manipulate, nudge, and increasingly control the very individuals who generated them. Most insidiously, the creators of these technologies redefined the ecosystem: individuals were excluded from the category of stakeholders and reduced to mere data generators and targets.

Digital technology, once hailed as a savior, now reshapes individuals in impersonal, extractive ways. It barters human experiences for shareholder profit, with no space for dialogue, no commitment to the ethical enhancement of individual capabilities. The foundational ideals of autonomy and dignity have been sacrificed at the altar of surveillance and profit.

II. Theoretical Framework: Surveillance Capitalism and Digital Colonialism

Shoshana Zuboff’s concept of surveillance capitalism elucidates how corporations commodify personal data to predict and influence behavior, thereby undermining individual autonomy and democratic processes. This model thrives on the extraction of behavioral surplus—data beyond what is necessary for service provision—to fuel targeted advertising and behavioral modification.

In the Global South, this phenomenon extends into digital colonialism, where technological infrastructures and data governance are dominated by entities from the Global North. This dynamic perpetuates historical patterns of exploitation, with data becoming the new resource extracted from populations. The centralization of data control in the hands of a few global corporations exacerbates inequalities and undermines local autonomy.

III. Case Studies: Manifestations Across the Globe

A. Global North: The United States and Europe

   •   Cambridge Analytica Scandal: The unauthorized harvesting of Facebook user data to influence electoral outcomes exemplifies the manipulation of personal information for political and commercial gain.

   •   Digital Services Act (EU): The European Union’s legislative efforts aim to curb the excesses of surveillance capitalism by enforcing transparency and accountability among digital platforms.

B. Global South: Africa and Latin America

   •   Digital Financialization: In countries like Kenya and Brazil, the proliferation of mobile money and digital credit systems has led to increased surveillance of financial behaviors, often without adequate regulatory frameworks to protect users.

   •   Data Extraction by Tech Giants: Corporations from the Global North establish digital infrastructures in the Global South, collecting vast amounts of data while offering minimal benefits to local populations, thereby reinforcing economic dependencies.

C. India: A Microcosm of Surveillance Capitalism

   •   Aadhaar System: India’s biometric identification program has raised concerns about privacy and surveillance, with data being used beyond its original intent, often without informed consent.

   •   Facial Recognition Technologies: The deployment of facial recognition by law enforcement agencies in cities like Delhi and Hyderabad illustrates the increasing surveillance of citizens under the guise of security.

   •   Gig Economy Exploitation: Platforms like Swiggy and Zomato have been criticized for precarious labor conditions, where workers are subjected to algorithmic management without adequate labor protections.

IV. Economic Implications: Profits for the Few, Inequality for the Many

The concentration of data and digital infrastructure has led to unprecedented profits for a handful of corporations:

   •   In 2018, major tech companies like Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google collectively earned $63 billion in profit, with Apple bringing the total to $123 billion.

   •   In India, the top 1% of the population controls over 40% of the country’s wealth, while the bottom 50% holds just 3%.

These disparities have fueled social unrest and political instability, as marginalized populations grapple with economic exclusion and surveillance.

V. Psychological and Social Toll: Mental Disempowerment and Depression

The digital economy’s transformation has profound psychological impacts:

   •   Mental Health Crisis: In India, one in five employees is seeking mental health support, and 20% are contemplating quitting their jobs due to burnout.  

   •   Cyberbullying: Cyberbullying is emerging as a serious mental health issue among young people in India, leading to depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts.  

   •   Digital Mental Health Apps: While digital mental health tools are moderately to highly effective in reducing depression and anxiety symptoms in low- and middle-income countries, concerns about data privacy and the commodification of mental health data persist.  

VI. Conclusion: Reclaiming Digital Sovereignty

The trajectory of digital technologies from tools of empowerment to instruments of control necessitates a reevaluation of policies and practices. To restore individual agency and uphold democratic values, societies must address the challenges posed by surveillance capitalism and digital colonialism. By implementing robust data protection measures, ensuring transparency, and fostering a culture of digital ethics, the global community can work towards a digital future that respects and upholds individual dignity and democratic values.

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