tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/mobile-apps-10199/articlesMobile apps – The Conversation2023-10-04T12:33:32Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2117852023-10-04T12:33:32Z2023-10-04T12:33:32ZChina’s WeChat is all-encompassing but low-key − a Chinese media scholar explains the Taoist philosophy behind the everything app’s design<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550452/original/file-20230926-21-fsn084.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C8256%2C5499&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">WeChat aims to be everything to everyone but remain mostly in the background.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/chinese-customer-uses-his-mobile-to-pay-via-a-qr-code-with-news-photo/1228585197">Kevin Frayer/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Elon Musk’s vision of <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1577428272056389633?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1577428272056389633%7Ctwgr%5E98798ba97e9df0d4da1bbfab8889c32d547b76a4%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zdnet.com%2Farticle%2Fwhat-is-elon-musks-x-the-everything-app%2F">Twitter, now rebranded as X, as an
“everything app”</a> is no secret. When <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-dunkin-and-lego-rebrands-succeeded-but-x-missed-the-mark-210432">the X logo replaced Twitter’s blue bird</a>, the internet <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-media/elon-musk-x-twitter-everything-app-rcna96068">buzzed with heated discussions</a> about just what it would mean for X to be an everything app.</p>
<p>Musk promoted his super app project by referring to the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2023/jul/29/elon-musk-wechat-twitter-rebranding-everything-app-for-west">Chinese all-in-one app WeChat</a>. But for many American users unfamiliar with WeChat, a train of questions followed. What’s it like to use WeChat? How has WeChat become “everything” in China? Would it be possible to replicate the app’s success <a href="https://theconversation.com/elon-musk-aims-to-turn-twitter-into-an-everything-app-a-social-media-and-marketing-scholar-explains-what-that-is-and-why-its-not-so-easy-to-do-211023">in the U.S.</a>?</p>
<p>I’m <a href="https://ealc.wustl.edu/people/jianqing-chen">a Chinese digital media scholar</a>, and I’ve used WeChat since 2012. But, in contrast to Musk’s enthusiasm, I don’t think WeChat is something to write home about. I believe it’s ordinary rather than special, lacking distinctive features compared with the other popular apps I studied for my current book project about Chinese touchscreen media. </p>
<p>WeChat’s inconspicuousness on my phone screen is no accident. Although WeChat is an everything app in the sense of being a digital hub for over a billion users, the app’s design is intentionally grounded in a more nuanced and philosophical meaning of the word “everything” than you might expect.</p>
<h2>WeChat is an all-inclusive media ecosystem</h2>
<p>Launched in 2011, <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/01634437221128937">WeChat</a> has become an all-in-one app that offers services covering most aspects of everyday life, from instant messaging and mobile payments to photo- and video-sharing social networking. It has become a staple of daily activities for <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/255778/number-of-active-wechat-messenger-accounts/">1.3 billion Chinese mobile users</a>.</p>
<p>WeChat is also the app that China-bound travelers can download if they want to install only one app. WeChat can help you fill out customs declaration forms, call a taxi, pay for your hotel room and order food. Without WeChat, <a href="https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3037446/foreigners-life-beijing-without-access-alipay-or-wechat">a traveler in China would be like a fish out of water</a>, since everything in China now runs through smartphone screens and mobile payment platforms.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550456/original/file-20230926-17-zx53w2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A smart phone screen displaying a messaging app with Chinese text" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550456/original/file-20230926-17-zx53w2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550456/original/file-20230926-17-zx53w2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550456/original/file-20230926-17-zx53w2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550456/original/file-20230926-17-zx53w2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550456/original/file-20230926-17-zx53w2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550456/original/file-20230926-17-zx53w2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550456/original/file-20230926-17-zx53w2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">A smartphone displays WeChat’s group-messaging function.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/environmental-protection-volunteer-zhou-yuqing-organizes-a-news-photo/1244511282">Ou Dongqu/Xinhua via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>In this sense, WeChat is indeed an everything app. Its “everythingness” refers to its near omnipresence and omnipotence in everyday life. The app creates an all-encompassing and ever-expanding media ecosystem that influences users’ daily activities. It forms a gigantic digital hub that, as German philosopher and media theorist <a href="https://www.wiley.com/en-us/In+the+World+Interior+of+Capital%3A+Towards+a+Philosophical+Theory+of+Globalization-p-9780745647685">Peter Sloterdijk once described</a>, “has drawn inwards everything that was once on the outside.” </p>
<p>This “everythingness” leaves little room for rival companies to achieve similar dominance and turns every tap or swipe on a user’s smartphone into something a big tech company can profit from. This dream of an internet empire is perhaps what is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/27/technology/elon-musk-x-everything-app.html">so enticing for tech leaders like Musk</a>.</p>
<h2>A counterintuitive design philosophy</h2>
<p>Despite WeChat’s status as an everything app, it’s one of the least notable and attractive apps on my smartphone. WeChat rarely changes its logo to celebrate holidays or sends admin notifications to users. The app forms a relatively closed social space, since WeChat users can see only what their contacts post, unlike apps like <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/19/fashion/china-social-media-weibo-wechat.html">Weibo</a> or <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2022/11/tiktok-instagram-video-feeds-ai-algorithm/672002/">TikTok</a>, where celebrities amass millions of followers. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550501/original/file-20230927-15-rfh3br.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="graphic of a small figure of a person against a large moon-like orb" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550501/original/file-20230927-15-rfh3br.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/550501/original/file-20230927-15-rfh3br.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=959&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550501/original/file-20230927-15-rfh3br.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=959&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550501/original/file-20230927-15-rfh3br.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=959&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550501/original/file-20230927-15-rfh3br.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1205&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550501/original/file-20230927-15-rfh3br.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1205&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/550501/original/file-20230927-15-rfh3br.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1205&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">WeChat’s splash screen is visually clean and has been unchanged for a decade.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Screen capture by Jianqing Chen</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>But the lack of flashy, attention-grabbing features is actually one of WeChat’s intentional design philosophies, as WeChat’s founder and chief developer Allen Xiaolong Zhang made clear in his <a href="https://blog.wechat.com/2019/03/18/what-is-wechats-dream-wechat-founder-allen-zhang-explains/">annual public speeches in 2019 and 2020</a>. Zhang emphasized that one of WeChat’s design principles is to “get users out of the app as fast as possible,” meaning to reduce the amount of time users spend in WeChat.</p>
<p>This might seem paradoxical – if WeChat is trying to get its users to leave the app as fast as possible, how can it maintain its internet empire? Typically an app’s popularity is assessed based on how long users spend in the app, and users’ attention is the <a href="https://www.amazon.com/How-Do-Nothing-Resisting-Attention/dp/1612197493">scarce resource</a> various digital platforms fight for. </p>
<p>But Zhang claims that in order to sustain users’ daily engagement with the app in the long run, it’s important to let them leave the app as fast as possible. A low demand for time and effort is key to bringing users back into the app without exhausting them.</p>
<h2>A Taoist message behind WeChat’s design</h2>
<p>The design of <a href="https://chozan.co/blog/wechat-mini-programs/">WeChat miniprograms</a> makes Zhang’s idea clear. Miniprograms are embedded into WeChat as third-party developed sub-applications, and they provide users with easy access to a large range of services – like hailing a taxi, ordering food, buying train tickets and playing games – without leaving WeChat. Users can simply search in the app or scan a QR code to open a miniprogram, skipping the cumbersome processes of installing and uninstalling new apps. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/546042/original/file-20230903-23-ebj1at.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A screenshot of a smartphone homepage, with round circular apps and text in Chinese" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/546042/original/file-20230903-23-ebj1at.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/546042/original/file-20230903-23-ebj1at.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=1298&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/546042/original/file-20230903-23-ebj1at.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=1298&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/546042/original/file-20230903-23-ebj1at.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=1298&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/546042/original/file-20230903-23-ebj1at.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1632&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/546042/original/file-20230903-23-ebj1at.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1632&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/546042/original/file-20230903-23-ebj1at.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1632&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">WeChat has a panel of miniprograms that users pull down from the top of the screen.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Screen capture by Jianqing Chen</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Miniprograms are stored in a hidden panel at the top of the screen. They can be opened by swiping down the screen. These miniprograms appear to be ephemeral, diffusive and almost atmospheric. They give users the feeling that WeChat has disappeared or merged into the environment. </p>
<p>WeChat is what media scholars call “<a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/M/bo20069392.html">elemental</a>”: inconspicuous and nonintrusive, yet pervasive and as fundamental as the natural elements, just like air, water and clouds. </p>
<p>This environment of pervasiveness and unobtrusiveness resonates with the ancient Chinese Taoist philosophy that understands nothing (wu 无, or “not-being”) as that which forms the basis of all things (wanwu 万物 or “ten thousand things”). As <a href="https://terebess.hu/english/tao/Addiss-Lombardo-Watson.pdf">Tao Te Ching states</a>, “Dao begets One (or nothingness), One begets Two (yin and yang), Two begets Three (Heaven, Earth and Man; or yin, yang and breath qi), Three begets all things.” For Taoist thinkers, not-being determines how all things within the cosmos come into being, evolve and disappear.</p>
<p>Although the depth of these sagely texts is unfathomable, the Taoist thoughts from the past help people appreciate the interplay of everything and nothing. This perspective adds another layer of meaning to “everything” and opens up alternative visions of what an everything app can be. </p>
<p>Perhaps WeChat’s interpretation of the word “everything” – as simultaneously pervasive and inconspicuous – is the secret to its success over the past 10 years. I believe many tech leaders could benefit from a more sophisticated understanding of “everything” when envisioning the everything app, and not just equate “everything” simply with big and comprehensive.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211785/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jianqing Chen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The design philosophy of the everything app WeChat may seem paradoxical, being simultaneously pervasive and inconspicuous. But this idea of “everythingness” goes back to ancient Taoist philosophy.Jianqing Chen, Assistant Professor of East Asian Languages and Cultures and of Film and Media Studies, Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. LouisLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2110232023-08-10T12:40:57Z2023-08-10T12:40:57ZElon Musk aims to turn Twitter into an ‘everything app’ – a social media and marketing scholar explains what that is and why it’s not so easy to do<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541573/original/file-20230807-27645-si5z9k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=22%2C73%2C2095%2C1314&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Everything apps are designed to help you do, well, just about everything you do on a phone.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/businessman-working-with-laptop-computer-and-royalty-free-image/876409758?adppopup=true">Busakorn Pongparnit/Moment via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Elon Musk’s recent <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-dunkin-and-lego-rebrands-succeeded-but-x-missed-the-mark-210432">rebranding of Twitter as X</a> is a step toward the CEO’s goal of developing an “<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2023/07/25/musk-says-x-name-change-is-a-result-of-his-push-to-build-an-everything-app/?sh=579d990a75a1">everything app</a>.” <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/abrambrown/2022/06/21/elon-musk-and-the-super-alluring-dream-for-a-super-app/?sh=322db5f91343">Musk’s vision</a> is for X to mark the spot for all your digital needs – to chat with your friends, order groceries, watch videos and manage your finances, all on one platform.</p>
<p>His recent announcement might have left you wondering what an everything app is and whether you need really one. If everything apps are so great, why isn’t there one that’s widely used in the U.S. already?</p>
<p>As <a href="https://www.marshall.usc.edu/personnel/kristen-schiele">someone who studies</a> how consumers use social media and <a href="https://www.stukent.com/higher-ed/mobile-marketing-textbook">what that means for digital marketing</a>, I find the idea of an everything app intriguing. I think that an everything app has the potential to be widely adopted in the U.S. if it’s well designed and is valuable to its users. But there are lots of obstacles standing in the way of success – from data privacy concerns to building a larger user base.</p>
<h2>What is an everything app?</h2>
<p>An everything app, also known as a “<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/abrambrown/2022/06/21/elon-musk-and-the-super-alluring-dream-for-a-super-app/?sh=4d42e1b61343">super app</a>,” provides a wide range of features – from social networking to online shopping and financial services. Essentially it’s a fusion of many apps you may often use, like Instagram, Uber, WhatsApp and PayPal.</p>
<p>The intended goal of an everything app is to simplify daily tasks by saving time and effort needed to use multiple platforms. Through partnerships with third-party servicers, everything apps create an ecosystem where users can switch between different tasks without having to leave the app or install any others on their devices.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541576/original/file-20230807-27-1hket1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A hand holding a phone displaying an app store page for WeChat" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541576/original/file-20230807-27-1hket1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541576/original/file-20230807-27-1hket1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541576/original/file-20230807-27-1hket1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541576/original/file-20230807-27-1hket1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541576/original/file-20230807-27-1hket1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541576/original/file-20230807-27-1hket1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541576/original/file-20230807-27-1hket1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Everything apps, like WeChat, let users share photos with friends and pay bills, all in a single platform.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/illustration-wechat-suqian-city-jiangsu-province-china-july-news-photo/1526471417?adppopup=true">Future Publishing/Future Publishing via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Over the past few years, everything apps have <a href="https://gmo-research.com/news-events/articles/rise-super-apps#:%7E:text=Super%20apps%20have%20become%20increasingly,services%20into%20the%20single%20app">gained popularity</a>, particularly in some Asian countries, as users appreciate the increased efficiency and convenience of having all their contacts and favorite app features in the same place.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.wechat.com/en/">WeChat</a>, known as Weixin in China, is considered one of the first successful everything apps. This multifunctional app offers communication services – messaging, calling and social media – as well as many financial services, like mobile payment for peer-to-peer transactions and WeChat Pay, which helps users manage bill payments and investments.</p>
<p>WeChat’s <a href="https://www.statista.com/topics/9085/wechat/#topicOverview">widespread popularity</a> has transformed the way people in China communicate and conduct daily tasks. It has become an essential app for <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/255778/number-of-active-wechat-messenger-accounts">over 1 billion users</a> and is an <a href="https://daxueconsulting.com/wechat-marketing/">important marketing tool</a> for many businesses.</p>
<p>Other examples of everything apps include <a href="https://line.me/en/">Line</a> in Japan and <a href="https://www.kakaocorp.com/page/service/service/KakaoTalk?lang=en">KakaoTalk</a> in South Korea.</p>
<h2>Privacy and security concerns</h2>
<p>But the very thing that makes an everything app so appealing – putting everything in one place – is also a source of concern. </p>
<p>In order to function, an everything app needs to collect an <a href="https://theconversation.com/your-smartphone-apps-are-tracking-your-every-move-4-essential-reads-108586">extensive amount of data</a>, including your personal information, your contact lists, <a href="https://theconversation.com/your-mobile-phone-can-give-away-your-location-even-if-you-tell-it-not-to-65443">your location</a> and even how much you use the app.</p>
<p>Users are often not fully aware of how much of <a href="https://theconversation.com/data-privacy-laws-in-the-us-protect-profit-but-prevent-sharing-data-for-public-good-people-want-the-opposite-166320">their data is collected and shared</a>. When was the last time you carefully read through an app’s privacy policy? Some apps retain data for extended periods of time, even after a user has abandoned the app. Storing so much data in one place also increases the risk of a breach.</p>
<p>This extensive amount of tracking raises concerns about surveillance and user profiling, especially in countries with weak data protection laws. An everything app may be subject to <a href="https://citizenlab.ca/2023/06/privacy-in-the-wechat-ecosystem-full-report">government surveillance and data requests</a>, further compromising users’ privacy. The app may also share this data with third-party service providers.</p>
<p>WeChat <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/tiktok-is-bad-but-wechat-is-worse-china-social-media-data-censorship-spying-ccp-app-mass-surveillance-11674593345">has been criticized</a> for its data collection, political censoring and surveillance. <a href="https://citizenlab.ca/2023/06/privacy-in-the-wechat-ecosystem-full-report">Research has found</a> that WeChat complies with government and police requests for data and information, so it can be used as a surveillance tool and for content censorship. Some countries <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/29/world/asia/tik-tok-banned-india-china.html">have banned</a> or <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/australian-lawmakers-recommend-potential-wechat-ban-govt-devices-2023-08-01">are considering banning</a> WeChat because of security concerns. </p>
<p>To address privacy concerns, I believe everything apps need to be transparent about their data collection practices. Users will be more open to embracing an everything app if they have the means to manage their privacy settings and delete their data.</p>
<h2>Building a user base</h2>
<p>It’s difficult to predict <a href="https://theconversation.com/metas-threads-is-surging-but-mass-migration-from-twitter-is-likely-to-remain-an-uphill-battle-209367">whether an app will take off</a>. Advertising can motivate someone to download an app, but word of mouth is often far more effective. As you see more of your friends join a specific social media platform, you might be more tempted to download that app so you don’t miss out.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541574/original/file-20230807-25-a9aav1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Young people sitting looking at phones" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541574/original/file-20230807-25-a9aav1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541574/original/file-20230807-25-a9aav1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541574/original/file-20230807-25-a9aav1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541574/original/file-20230807-25-a9aav1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541574/original/file-20230807-25-a9aav1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541574/original/file-20230807-25-a9aav1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541574/original/file-20230807-25-a9aav1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">There’s a social component to whether or not an app finds success.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/diverse-young-teenage-students-having-fun-using-royalty-free-image/1371288493?adppopup=true">Xavier Lorenzo/Moment via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Good security and privacy aren’t enough to build a strong user base – the app also needs to be easy to use. While the goal of the app is to put everything in one place, some users may feel alienated by a confusing or cluttered interface. Familiar icons, navigation and terminology can help users feel more comfortable and encourage them to use the app more. </p>
<p>In addition, an app with so many features requires lots of resources, like storage and processing power. Users with older mobile devices may be frustrated with slow loading times or buggy responsiveness, pushing them away from using an everything app. </p>
<p>There’s also the possibility that some U.S. users may not buy into the idea of an everything app. Although integrating finances into WeChat has been successful in China, where <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1243879/china-mobile-payment-penetration-rate">more than 84% of adults use mobile payments</a>, it may not be as easily accepted in the U.S., where <a href="https://www.statista.com/topics/982/mobile-payments">less than 33% of adults use mobile payments</a> and previous attempts to connect social features with finances have failed. Just look at Snapchat, which <a href="https://mashable.com/article/snapchat-shuts-down-snapcash">shut down Snapcash</a> in 2018. Even if developers managed to build the perfect everything app, there may be some people who just won’t want it – especially if that app is held by a private company subject to the whims of a <a href="https://www.vox.com/technology/2023/3/23/23651151/twitter-advertisers-elon-musk-brands-revenue-fleeing">controversial owner</a> <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/twitter-users-reach-breaking-point-elon-musk-rcna62403">like Musk</a>.</p>
<p>So where does this leave X? The app has a long way to go before it <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/abrambrown/2022/06/21/elon-musk-and-the-super-alluring-dream-for-a-super-app/?sh=322db5f91343">becomes an everything app</a>, and Musk’s many changes to the platform <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/07/26/8-facts-about-americans-and-twitter-as-it-rebrands-to-x/">already have</a> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/dec/13/twitter-lose-users-elon-musk-takeover-hate-speech">users jumping ship</a> in search of a Twitter substitute. But, whether it’s X or not, I think there’s certainly room in the U.S. for an everything app to move in.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211023/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kristen Schiele is affiliated with Marketing Educators Association. </span></em></p>Everything apps offer a wide range of features, combining social media with personal finances. But creating the perfect everything app is no easy task.Kristen Schiele, Associate Professor of Clinical Marketing, University of Southern CaliforniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2034352023-05-02T14:06:01Z2023-05-02T14:06:01ZNigeria and digital banking: a revolution still waiting to happen<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/520775/original/file-20230413-26-hhkl4x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Cash is still king in Nigeria. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/this-picture-taken-on-january-28-2016-in-lagos-shows-naira-news-photo/507489912?adppopup=true">Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images </a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>At the end of 2022 the Central Bank of Nigeria <a href="https://punchng.com/just-in-buhari-unveils-new-naira-notes-at-aso-rock/">launched</a> new banknotes. At the same time it also <a href="https://www.pensionnigeria.com/blog/cbn-imposes-new-cash-withdrawal-limits-on-nigeria-bank-accounts-full-circular-to-banks/">capped</a> withdrawal of the new banknotes. The rollout of the currency change was <a href="https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/585737-timeline-naira-redesign-policy-from-inception-to-supreme-court-judgement.html">shambolic</a>. But it also led people to turn to digital financial services such as the use of <a href="https://nibss-plc.com.ng/news/4xapzv7015vgjryewfn8e2wd50">point of sale (PoS) machines for payments</a> in their transactions. <a href="https://pubdocs.worldbank.org/en/230281588169110691/Digital-Financial-Services.pdf#page=12">Digital financial services</a> are financial services which rely on digital technologies for their delivery and use by consumers. The Conversation Africa’s Wale Fatade asks Iwa Salami, an expert in financial technology regulation and financial regulation in emerging economies, to explain the increase and its implications.</em></p>
<p><strong>How did the botched currency changeover affect the way Nigerians used the banking system?</strong></p>
<p>The Central Bank <a href="https://www.cbn.gov.ng/Out/2022/CCD/Naira_Redesign.pdf">set a deadline of 31 January 2023</a> for all old notes to be deposited in banks in exchange for new. The country was <a href="https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/585737-timeline-naira-redesign-policy-from-inception-to-supreme-court-judgement.html">plunged into a currency crisis</a> when all old notes were out of circulation and the new notes were hardly circulating. The ensuing scarcity of cash made life unbearably hard for Nigerians.</p>
<p>One outcome was that Nigerians sought alternative ways to pay for goods and services using digital alternatives, such as point of sale machines. Between 2017 and 2022, the number of point of sale terminals in Nigeria grew significantly. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1178109/number-of-pos-terminals-in-nigeria/">In 2017, there were around 155,000 terminals</a>, and this number has increased to roughly 1.1 million as of April 2022. Merchants and PoS operators handle the machines. Their operations are <a href="https://www.cbn.gov.ng/cashless/POS_GUIDELINES_August2011_FINAL_FINAL%20(2).pdf">regulated by the Central Bank</a>. </p>
<p>It also resulted in a <a href="https://www.nibss-plc.com.ng/news/4xapzv7015vgjryewfn8e2wd50">surge </a>in point of sales transactions in Nigeria. There was a 40.69% year-on-year increase from the N573.72 billion (US$1.24 billion) transactions that was done in January 2022 to N807.16 billion (US$1.75 billion) in January 2023. Total cashless transactions also rose by 45.41% year-on-year to N39.58 trillion (US$85.96 billion) in January 2023.</p>
<h2>What are the most developed forms of electronic transacting in Nigeria?</h2>
<p><strong>Point of Sale (PoS):</strong> These devices are installed both by traditional banks as well as by payment service banks. They are now ubiquitous throughout Nigeria - in supermarkets, large retail outlets as well as in small-scale businesses set up for this purpose only. </p>
<p><strong>Payment service banks:</strong> These <a href="https://www.mondaq.com/nigeria/financial-services/1188262/payment-service-banks-psb-in-nigeria">are technology driven companies</a> licensed by the Central Bank to engage in banking activities. Examples are Hope and MoneyMaster.</p>
<p><strong>Fintechs:</strong> This <a href="https://plaid.com/resources/fintech/what-is-fintech/">includes</a> any app, software, or technology that allows people or businesses to digitally access, manage, or gain insights into their finances or make financial transactions. A number of companies offer these services in Nigeria. They include Flutterwave, Piggyvest, OPay, Interswitch, Kuda and Remita. </p>
<p><strong>Online banking offered by traditional banks:</strong> All Nigerian banks offer online services. However, the services aren’t always reliable. During the currency crisis, for example, platforms collapsed and customers were unable to transact. Digital platforms didn’t have the ability to cope with the deluge of online transactions.</p>
<p><strong>Mobile money:</strong> <a href="https://datahelp.imf.org/knowledgebase/articles/1906552-fas-what-is-mobile-money-how-is-it-different-fro#:%7E:text=It%20is%20a%20financial%20service,is%20a%20basic%20mobile%20phone.">Financial service offered by a mobile network operator</a> and can be independent of the traditional banking network. A bank account is not required to use mobile money services – the only pre-requisite is a basic mobile phone.</p>
<p>Those offering this service include MTN and Airtel Africa. As with most other countries on the continent, mobile money uptake in Nigeria has been slow. The exception has been <a href="https://thedocs.worldbank.org/en/doc/4fff8526d366d112cd9fd96eaf4adbb1-0050062022/original/FindexNote1-062419.pdf">Kenya,</a> where the <a href="https://www.vodafone.com/about-vodafone/what-we-do/consumer-products-and-services/m-pesa">launch of MPesa in 2007 </a> led to a massive uptake in mobile financial services. </p>
<p>In 2022, the Central Bank of Nigeria issued MTN the first license to operate mobile money services. It started <a href="https://www.mtn.ng/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/MoMo-Payment-Service-Bank-commences-Commercial-Operations.pdf?_ga=2.69147735.751641338.1681378566-391186901.1681378566">operations in May</a>. MTN is the largest mobile network operator in Nigeria.</p>
<h2>Can you paint a picture of the banking landscape?</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1182094/number-of-bank-customers-in-nigeria/">In 2021 Nigeria had 122.3 million active bank customers</a>. According to February 2022 data only <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1139751/popularity-of-financial-products-or-services-in-nigeria/">39% of Nigerians</a> use the formal banking system.</p>
<p>As has been shown elsewhere, <a href="https://www.gsma.com/mobilefordevelopment/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/SOTIR_2014.pdf#page=14">mobile money offerings</a>, as well as other digital services, can extend banking to the unbanked. </p>
<p>In 2022 the volume of transactions performed electronically in Nigeria surged to the highest in five years. The total volume of the Inter Bank Settlement Scheme Instant Payment Platform transactions<a href="https://www.nibss-plc.com.ng/news/4cy2cqt4g9bkj44n75n4ete3x9#:%7E:text=A%20latest%20Mastercard%20survey%20said,websites%20to%20make%20financial%20transactions.">rose by 613.1% to 5.2 billion in 2022 from 729.2 million in 2018</a>. <a href="https://www.nibss-plc.com.ng/news/4cy2cqt4g9bkj44n75n4ete3x9#:%7E:text=A%20latest%20Mastercard%20survey%20said,websites%20to%20make%20financial%20transactions.">Its value also increased</a> by 381.5% from N80.4 trillion (US$174.6 billion) as at 2018 to N387.1 trillion (US$840.67billion) in 2022. </p>
<p>In my view, the spike in the value of transactions carried out at point-of-sale devices in Nigeria in January 2023 – they went up by <a href="https://nibss-plc.com.ng/news/4xapzv7015vgjryewfn8e2wd50">40.7% higher compared to the same month in 2022</a> – shows a wider adoption of digital payments. It is also an indication of the huge opportunities that mobile money operators and other forms of digital payments have in Nigeria. </p>
<h2>How does Nigeria’s digital currency eNaira fit into the picture?</h2>
<p>eNaira was <a href="https://www.cbn.gov.ng/out/2021/ccd/enaira%20launch%20press%20release%20%20231021.pdf">launched by the Central Bank in October 2021</a>. However, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-10-25/shunned-digital-currency-looks-for-street-credibility-in-nigeria?leadSource=uverify%20wall">less than 0.5% of Nigerians</a> were recorded as using it a year after its launch. </p>
<p>The Central Bank didn’t have an adoption strategy for the eNaira planned ahead of the currency change over. This was clearly a missed opportunity. </p>
<p>Although the aim of the currency was to <a href="https://enaira.gov.ng/assets/download/eNaira_Design_Paper.pdf#page=4">facilitate financial inclusion</a> and shrink the size of the informal market, it’s fallen short of the mark. It is currently only accessible to those with bank accounts. So, despite a <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-03-21/nigeria-digital-currency-transactions-jump-63-on-cash-shortages?leadSource=uverify%20wall&sref=3REHEaVI">reported increase in the number of e-Naira wallets</a> to 13 million since October 2022, and an increase in the value of transactions in 2023, a lot still needs to be done to drive widespread adoption by the financially excluded. </p>
<p>Rethinking its architecture and policies to drive its adoption could include: </p>
<ul>
<li><p>making it accessible to all with a mobile phone; </p></li>
<li><p>incentivising people to use it such as granting significant discounts when used to pay taxes and for other public services; and </p></li>
<li><p>embedding mobile network or payments apps into Central Bank Digital Currency wallets for the wallets to be inter-operable with mobile network operators’ infrastructure. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>A lesson of the currency crisis is that fintech offers a solution to the limitations of legacy financial institutions, and at the same time, they can help address the financial exclusion challenge in Nigeria.</p>
<p>Had Nigeria appreciated the value of digital finance and particularly the key role to be played by mobile money operators, the impact of the crisis would not have been as painful.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/203435/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Iwa Salami does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Nigeria’s Central Bank didn’t have an adoption strategy for its digital currency. It was a missed opportunity.Iwa Salami, Reader (Associate Professor) in Law, University of East LondonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2021272023-03-22T00:06:33Z2023-03-22T00:06:33ZPopular fertility apps are engaging in widespread misuse of data, including on sex, periods and pregnancy<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/516601/original/file-20230321-690-se9b8m.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=24%2C58%2C3210%2C2095&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> </figcaption></figure><p>New research reveals serious privacy flaws in fertility apps used by Australian consumers – emphasising the need for urgent reform of the Privacy Act.</p>
<p>Fertility apps provide a number of features. For instance, they may help users track their periods, identify a “fertile window” if they’re trying to conceive, track different stages and symptoms of pregnancy, and prepare for parenthood up until the baby’s birth. </p>
<p>These apps collect deeply sensitive data about consumers’ sex lives, health, emotional states and menstrual cycles. And many of them are intended for use by children as young as 13. </p>
<p>My report <a href="https://allenshub.unsw.edu.au/sites/default/files/2023-03/KKemp%20Your%20Body%20Our%20Data%2022.03.23.pdf">published today</a> analysed the privacy policies, messages and settings of 12 of the most popular fertility apps used by Australian consumers (excluding apps that require a connection with a wearable device). </p>
<p>This analysis uncovered a number of concerning practices by these apps including:</p>
<ul>
<li>confusing and misleading privacy messages</li>
<li>a lack of choice in how data are used</li>
<li>inadequate de-identification measures when data are shared with other organisations</li>
<li>retention of data for years even after a consumer stops using the app, exposing them to unnecessary risk from potential data breaches.</li>
</ul>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/proposed-privacy-reforms-could-help-australia-play-catch-up-with-other-nations-but-they-fail-to-tackle-targeted-ads-200166">Proposed privacy reforms could help Australia play catch-up with other nations. But they fail to tackle targeted ads</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The data collected</h2>
<p>The apps in this study collect intimate data from consumers, such as:</p>
<ul>
<li>their pregnancy test results</li>
<li>when they have sex and whether they had an orgasm</li>
<li>whether they used a condom or “withdrawal” method</li>
<li>when they have their period</li>
<li>how their moods change (including anxiety, panic and depression)</li>
<li>and if they have health conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome, endometriosis or uterine fibroids. </li>
</ul>
<p>Some ask for unnecessary details, such as when a user smokes and drinks alcohol, their education level, whether they struggle to pay their bills, if they feel safe at home, and whether they have stable housing.</p>
<p>They also track which support groups you join, what you add to your “to-do list” or “questions for doctor”, and which articles you read. All of this creates a more detailed picture of your health, family situation and intentions.</p>
<h2>Confusing or misleading privacy messages</h2>
<p>Consumers should expect the clearest information about how such data are collected, used and disclosed. Yet we found some of the messaging is highly confusing or misleading.</p>
<p>Some apps say “we will never sell your data”. But the fine print of the privacy policy contains a term that allows them to sell all your data as part of the sale of the app or database to another company. </p>
<p>This possibility is not just theoretical. Of the 12 apps included in the study, one was previously taken over by a drug development company, and another two by a digital media company.</p>
<p>Other apps explain privacy settings using language that makes it almost impossible for a consumer to understand what they are choosing, or obscure the privacy settings by placing them numerous clicks and scrolls away from the home screen. </p>
<h2>Keeping sensitive data for too long</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-10-21/medibank-optus-data-hack/101558932">major data breaches</a> of the past six months highlight the risks of companies holding onto personal data longer than necessary. </p>
<p>Breaches of highly sensitive information about health and sexual activities could lead to <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4387341">discrimination, exploitation, humiliation or blackmail</a>. </p>
<p>Most of the apps we analysed keep user data for at least three years after the user quits the app – or seven years in the case of one brand. Some apps give no indication of when user data will be deleted. </p>
<h2>Can’t count on ‘de-identification’</h2>
<p>Some apps also give consumers no choice regarding whether their “de-identified” health data will be sold or transferred to other companies for research or business. Or, they have consumers opted-in to these extra uses by default, putting the onus on users to opt out.</p>
<p>Moreover, some of these data are not truly de-identified. For example, removing your name and email address and replacing it with a unique number is not de-identification for legal purposes. Someone would only need to work out the link between your name and that number in order to link your whole record with you.</p>
<p>When supposedly de-identified Medicare records were published in 2016, <a href="https://www.unimelb.edu.au/newsroom/news/2017/december/research-reveals-de-identified-patient-data-can-be-re-identified">University of Melbourne researchers</a> showed how just a few data points can connect a de-identified record to a unique individual.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/post-roe-women-in-america-are-right-to-be-concerned-about-digital-surveillance-and-its-not-just-period-tracking-apps-185865">Post Roe, women in America are right to be concerned about digital surveillance – and it’s not just period-tracking apps</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Need for reform</h2>
<p>This research highlights the unfair and unsafe data practices consumers are subjected to when they use fertility apps. And these findings reinforce the need for Australia’s privacy laws to be updated. </p>
<p>We need improvements in what data are covered by the Privacy Act, what choices consumers can make about their data, what data uses are prohibited, and what security systems companies must have in place.</p>
<p>The government is seeking <a href="https://www.ag.gov.au/rights-and-protections/publications/privacy-act-review-report">submissions</a> on potential privacy law reforms until March 31. </p>
<p>In the meantime, if you’re using a fertility app, there are some steps you can take to help reduce some of the privacy risks: </p>
<ol>
<li>when launching the app for the first time, don’t agree to tracking of your data, or you can limit ad tracking via iPhone device settings </li>
<li>don’t log in via a social media account</li>
<li>don’t answer questions or add data you don’t need to for your own purposes</li>
<li>don’t share your Apple Health or FitBit data</li>
<li>if the app provides privacy choices, opt out of tracking and having your data sold or used for research, and delete your data when you stop using the app</li>
<li>bear in mind that every article you read, and how long you spend on it, and every group you join and comment you make there may be added to a profile about you. </li>
</ol>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/after-roe-v-wade-heres-how-women-could-adopt-spycraft-to-avoid-tracking-and-prosecution-186046">After Roe v Wade, here's how women could adopt 'spycraft' to avoid tracking and prosecution</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/202127/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katharine Kemp receives funding from The Allens Hub for Technology, Law and Innovation. She is a Member of the Advisory Board of the Future of Finance Initiative in India, and the Australian Privacy Foundation.</span></em></p>An analysis of 12 popular apps’ privacy policies reveals a number of concerns, including confusing privacy messages and unnecessarily long data retention windows.Katharine Kemp, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Law & Justice, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1916722022-10-18T01:04:12Z2022-10-18T01:04:12Z3 ways app developers keep kids glued to the screen – and what to do about it<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489718/original/file-20221014-22-4bjtx2.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=242%2C391%2C4257%2C2604&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>From learning numbers to learning how to brush your teeth, it seems there’s a kids’ app for everything. </p>
<p>Recent US statistics indicate more than half of toddlers and three-quarters of preschoolers <a href="https://www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/default/files/research/report/2020_zero_to_eight_census_final_web.pdf">regularly access</a> mobile apps. So it’s no surprise there has been an explosion of options within the app market to keep kids engaged.</p>
<p>These apps certainly offer some fun interactive experiences, not to mention good educational content in many cases. They’re also very good at keeping young minds engaged. So what’s the catch? </p>
<p>You just read it: they are <em>very</em> good at keeping young minds engaged – so much that kids can struggle to put their devices down. If you’ve ever wondered why it’s so hard to tear your child from their device, read on.</p>
<h2>What is persuasive design?</h2>
<p>Although there are <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/health-topics/physical-activity-and-exercise/physical-activity-and-exercise-guidelines-for-all-australians">national recommendations</a> to help guide parents through the minefield of kids’ screen time, there is a hugely under-acknowledged piece of this puzzle – and that’s the way the technology itself is designed.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/persuasive-design">Persuasive design</a> refers to strategies that grab and hold our attention. It’s something both kids and adults experience (usually unknowingly) while scrolling through social media or fighting the urge to play another round of Candy Crush.</p>
<p>If persuasive design can influence the screen-use behaviours of adults – who have supposedly developed regulatory skills and self-control – then toddlers and kids don’t stand a chance. This aspect of the screen-time debate is rarely scrutinised with the seriousness it deserves. </p>
<p>To find out just how persuasive kids’ apps can be, we applied a <a href="https://www.academia.edu/download/43956371/Behavior-Model-for-Persuasive-Design.pdf">well-established model</a> of persuasive design to 132 of the most popular early childhood apps downloaded by Australian families via the Android and iOS app stores. <a href="https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1fqfn2f%7EUWIssm">We found</a> three main ways persuasive design features keep kids coming back. </p>
<h2>1. Motivation</h2>
<p>A key concept in persuasive design is to tap into kids’ emotions to ensure they stay motivated to engage with the app. This is done by:</p>
<ul>
<li><p><strong>offering pleasure through rewards</strong>. Kids are still developing their ability to <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1126/science.2658056">delay gratification</a>. They’re more likely to seek an immediate reward of lower value than wait for a reward of higher value. In the context of apps, they’re likely to be motivated by instant rewards that bring happiness or excitement. The apps we tested offered many more instant rewards (such as sparkles, cheers, fireworks, virtual toys and stickers) than delayed rewards. </p></li>
<li><p><strong>provoking empathy</strong>. Just as adults seek positive feedback through “likes” on social media, kids love receiving social feedback from characters they admire (think Hello Kitty, or Bluey). Kids often attribute human <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/1127846">feelings and intentions</a> to fictional characters and can form <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=bziTAwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA187&dq=parasocial+relationships+young+children&ots=Z9EmxV6x30&sig=5s7EAAiGJHI2HKaXZHThszkvoLc">emotional ties</a> with them. While this can help foster a positive learning experience, it can also be exploited for commercial purposes. For instance, character empathy is at play when Hello Kitty looks sadly at a shiny locked box of food that can only be opened in the paid version of the app. </p></li>
</ul>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/12_YEGh8tC4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">YouTube/Budge Studios.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>2. Ability</h2>
<p>No one wants to play a game that’s too difficult to win. Ability features provide kids with continuous instructions to reduce the likelihood of disengagement.</p>
<p>One way to increase a child’s sense of mastery is <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1999-15231-005">repetition</a>. Many early childhood apps include rote learning, such as making the same cookie over and over with the Cookie Monster. By including tasks that are quick to learn and repeating them, app designers are likely trying to tap into childrens’ growing <a href="https://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson.html">sense of autonomy</a> by helping them “win” on their own. </p>
<p>So what’s the problem with that? While repetition is great for learning (especially for developing minds), the removal of any requirement for help from a parent can encourage more solitary use of apps. It can also make it harder for parents to engage in <a href="https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article-abstract/119/1/182/70699">social play</a> with their child. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489719/original/file-20221014-12-5ah99y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Sesame Street's Cookie Monster holds up 7 fingers, next to some cookies and a surprised child in the background." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489719/original/file-20221014-12-5ah99y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489719/original/file-20221014-12-5ah99y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489719/original/file-20221014-12-5ah99y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489719/original/file-20221014-12-5ah99y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489719/original/file-20221014-12-5ah99y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489719/original/file-20221014-12-5ah99y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489719/original/file-20221014-12-5ah99y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">We have a responsibility to ensure kids’ apps are genuinely educational and aren’t exploiting their developmental vulnerabilities.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Google Play/Sesame Street Alphabet Kitchen</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>3. Prompts</h2>
<p>Commercial prompts were the most common trigger we found in early childhood apps, especially free apps. They have one main purpose: to bring in revenue.</p>
<p>Prompts include pop-up advertisements, offers to double or triple rewards in exchange for watching an ad, or prompting the user to make in-app purchases. While adults might be able to see prompts for what they are, kids are much less likely to understand the underlying commercial intent.</p>
<h2>So what can be done?</h2>
<p>There’s no doubt some of these features in moderation help maintain a basic level of app engagement. But our research makes it clear a lot of persuasive design features simply exist to serve business models. </p>
<p>We need to have more conversations about ethical design that doesn’t capitalise on children’s developmental vulnerabilities. This includes holding app developers accountable. </p>
<p>The early-childhood app market is vast. Parents often won’t have enough information on how to navigate it, nor enough time to assess each app before downloading it for their child. However, there are a few ways parents can get an upper hand:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>talk to your child after they’ve played with an app. Ask questions like “what did you learn?”, or “what did you enjoy the most?”.</p></li>
<li><p>play the app with your child and decide if it’s worth keeping. Are they getting smothered by rewards? Are there many distracting prompts? Is it too repetitive to be genuinely educational?</p></li>
<li><p>look for the “<a href="https://play.google.com/console/about/programs/teacherapproved/">teacher-approved</a>” indicator (on Play Store) when considering an app, or check reviews from trusted sources such as <a href="https://childrenandmedia.org.au/app-reviews/">Children and Media Australia</a> and <a href="https://www.commonsensemedia.org/app-reviews">Common Sense Media</a> before downloading.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Ideally your child should be leading the play, actively problem-solving, and should be able to end their time on an app relatively easily.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/screen-time-for-kids-is-an-outdated-concept-so-lets-ditch-it-and-focus-on-quality-instead-186462">'Screen time' for kids is an outdated concept, so let's ditch it and focus on quality instead</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/191672/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Persuasive design in kids’ apps is often overlooked in the screen-time debate.Sumudu Mallawaarachchi, PhD Candidate, School of Psychology, Deakin UniversitySharon Horwood, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1890992022-09-27T12:28:00Z2022-09-27T12:28:00ZThe same app can pose a bigger security and privacy threat depending on the country where you download it, study finds<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486346/original/file-20220923-13704-kn2fv1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C141%2C3552%2C2478&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Same app, same app store, different risks if you download it in, say, Tunisia rather than in Germany.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/blinkee-city-rental-scooter-is-seen-in-warsaw-poland-on-news-photo/1031626648">NurPhoto via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Google and Apple have removed hundreds of apps from their app stores at the request of governments around the world, creating regional disparities in access to mobile apps at a time when many <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/267209/global-app-economy/">economies are becoming increasingly dependent on them</a>. </p>
<p>The mobile phone giants have removed over <a href="https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/garena-free-fire-to-tiktok-all-the-273-chinese-apps-that-indian-govt-banned-so-far-1913141-2022-02-15">200 Chinese apps</a>, including widely downloaded apps like TikTok, at the Indian government’s request in recent years. Similarly, the companies removed LinkedIn, an essential app for professional networking, from Russian app stores <a href="https://fortune.com/2017/01/08/russia-linkedin-google-apple/">at the Russian government’s request</a>. </p>
<p>However, access to apps is just one concern. <a href="https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/7550024?hl=en">Developers also regionalize apps</a>, meaning they produce different versions for different countries. This raises the question of whether these apps differ in their security and privacy capabilities based on region. </p>
<p>In a perfect world, access to apps and app security and privacy capabilities would be consistent everywhere. Popular mobile apps <a href="https://iapp.org/news/a/the-case-for-a-global-data-privacy-adequacy-standard/">should be available without increasing the risk</a> that users are spied on or tracked based on what country they’re in, especially given that not every country has strong data protection regulations.</p>
<p>My colleagues and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=mWT_pCcAAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate">I</a> recently studied the <a href="https://www.usenix.org/conference/usenixsecurity22/presentation/kumar">availability and privacy policies</a> of thousands of globally popular apps on <a href="https://play.google.com/about/howplayworks/">Google Play</a>, the <a href="https://www.lifewire.com/what-is-google-play-1616720">app store for Android devices</a>, in 26 countries. We found differences in app availability, security and privacy. </p>
<p>While our study corroborates reports of takedowns due to government requests, we also found many differences introduced by app developers. We found instances of apps with settings and disclosures that expose users to higher or lower security and privacy risks depending on the country in which they’re downloaded.</p>
<h2>Geoblocked apps</h2>
<p>The countries and one special administrative region in our study are diverse in location, population and gross domestic product. They include the U.S., Germany, Hungary, Ukraine, Russia, South Korea, Turkey, Hong Kong and India. We also included countries like Iran, Zimbabwe and Tunisia, where it was difficult to collect data. We studied 5,684 globally popular apps, each with over 1 million installs, from the top 22 <a href="https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/9859673?hl=en#zippy=%2Capps">app categories</a>, including Books and Reference, Education, Medical, and News and Magazines. </p>
<p>Our study showed high amounts of geoblocking, with 3,672 of 5,684 globally popular apps blocked in at least one of our 26 countries. Blocking by developers was significantly higher than takedowns requested by governments in all our countries and app categories. We found that Iran and Tunisia have the highest blocking rates, with apps like Microsoft Office, Adobe Reader, Flipboard and Google Books all unavailable for download.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486347/original/file-20220923-214-6f3tzz.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="three text boxes stacked vertically" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486347/original/file-20220923-214-6f3tzz.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/486347/original/file-20220923-214-6f3tzz.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=468&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486347/original/file-20220923-214-6f3tzz.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=468&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486347/original/file-20220923-214-6f3tzz.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=468&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486347/original/file-20220923-214-6f3tzz.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=589&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486347/original/file-20220923-214-6f3tzz.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=589&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/486347/original/file-20220923-214-6f3tzz.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=589&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Attempting to download the LinkedIn app in the Google Play app store is a different experience in, from top to bottom, the U.S., Iran and Russia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.usenix.org/system/files/sec22-kumar.pdf">Kumar et al.</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We found regional overlap in the apps that are geoblocked. In European countries in our study – Germany, Hungary, Ireland and the U.K. – 479 of the same apps were geoblocked. Eight of those, including Blued and USA Today News, were blocked only in the European Union, possibly because of the region’s <a href="https://gdpr-info.eu/">General Data Protection Regulation</a>. Turkey, Ukraine and Russia also show similar blocking patterns, with high blocking of virtual private network apps in Turkey and Russia, which is consistent with the recent upsurge of <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/06/18/russia-growing-internet-isolation-control-censorship">surveillance</a> laws.</p>
<p>Of the 61 country-specific takedowns by Google, 36 were unique to South Korea, including 17 gambling and gaming apps taken down in accordance with the <a href="https://www.hapskorea.com/south-koreas-complex-relationship-with-gambling/">national prohibition on online gambling</a>. While the Indian government’s takedown of Chinese apps happened with full public disclosure, surprisingly most of the takedowns we observed occurred without much public awareness or debate. </p>
<h2>Differences in security and privacy</h2>
<p>The apps we downloaded from Google Play also showed differences based on country in their security and privacy capabilities. One hundred twenty-seven apps varied in what the apps were allowed to access on users’ mobile phones, 49 of which had additional permissions deemed “dangerous” by Google. Apps in Bahrain, Tunisia and Canada requested the most additional dangerous permissions. </p>
<p>Three VPN apps enable clear text communication in some countries, which allows unauthorized access to users’ communications. One hundred and eighteen apps varied in the number of ad trackers included in an app in some countries, with the categories Games, Entertainment and Social, with Iran and Ukraine having the most increases in the number of ad trackers compared to the baseline number common to all countries. </p>
<p>One hundred and three apps have differences based on country in their privacy policies. Users in countries not covered by data protection regulations, such as GDPR in the EU and the California Consumer Privacy Act in the U.S., are at higher privacy risk. For instance, 71 apps available from Google Play have clauses to comply with GDPR only in the EU and CCPA only in the U.S. Twenty-eight apps that use dangerous permissions make no mention of it, despite <a href="https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/10144311?visit_id=637995492293465522-1318183419&rd=1">Google’s policy</a> requiring them to do so. </p>
<h2>The role of app stores</h2>
<p>App stores allow developers to target their apps to users based on a wide array of factors, including their country and their device’s specific features. Though Google has taken <a href="https://android-developers.googleblog.com/2021/05/new-safety-section-in-google-play-will.html">some steps toward transparency</a> in its app store, our research shows that there are shortcomings in Google’s auditing of the app ecosystem, some of which could put users’ security and privacy at risk.</p>
<p>Potentially also as a result of app store policies in some countries, app stores that specialize in specific regions of the world are becoming increasingly popular. However, these app stores may not have adequate vetting policies, thereby allowing altered versions of apps to reach users. For example, a national government could pressure a developer to provide a version of an app that includes <a href="https://doi.org/10.1109/SP40000.2020.00072">backdoor access</a>. There is no straightforward way for users to distinguish an altered app from an unaltered one.</p>
<p>Our research provides several recommendations to app store proprietors to address the issues we found:
</p><ul>
<li>Better moderate their country targeting features
</li><li>Provide detailed transparency reports on app takedowns
</li><li>Vet apps for differences based on country or region
</li><li>Push for transparency from developers on their need for the differences
</li><li>Host app privacy policies themselves to ensure their availability when the policies are blocked in certain countries
</li></ul><p></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/189099/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kumar is employed by Skyhigh Security. She conducted and published the research reported in this article before joining the company.</span></em></p>Mobile apps are sometimes ‘regionalized’ to better serve the needs of users, functioning differently in, for example, China than in Canada. But some of those differences pose security and privacy risks.Renuka Kumar, Ph.D. student in Computer Science and Engineering, University of MichiganLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1625752021-07-28T12:24:42Z2021-07-28T12:24:42ZHealth apps track vital health stats for millions of people, but doctors aren’t using the data – here’s how it could reduce costs and patient outcomes<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/408984/original/file-20210629-20-z39aiu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=101%2C50%2C8385%2C5509&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Mobile health apps and gadgets could help doctors and patients treat chronic illnesses in real time.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/1267542302">Moment via Getty</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Health-tracking devices and apps are becoming part of everyday life. More <a href="https://www.iqvia.com/insights/the-iqvia-institute/reports/the-growing-value-of-digital-health">than 300,000 mobile phone applications</a> claim to help with managing diverse personal health issues, from monitoring blood glucose levels to conceiving a child.</p>
<p>But so far the potential for health-tracking apps to improve health care has barely been tapped. While they allow a user to collect and record personal health data, and sometimes even share it with friends and family, these apps typically don’t connect that information to a patient’s digital medical chart or make it easier for health care providers to monitor or share feedback with their patients.</p>
<p>As a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=2SFosXQAAAAJ">professor and a researcher</a> in the field of operations management, my current research focuses on improving the efficiency and effectiveness of health care delivery. My colleagues and I recently published <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097/HJH.0000000000002909">a multiyear study</a> showing that integrating a mobile health app with ongoing medical care can significantly improve the health of patients with hypertension – a widespread, serious and potentially deadly chronic medical condition.</p>
<p>But it’s not easy to use health apps this way as a regular part of medical care in the U.S.</p>
<h2>Case study: Hypertension</h2>
<p>Hypertension, better known as high blood pressure, is one of America’s leading chronic health problems. <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/bloodpressure/facts.htm">According the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a>, hypertension was a primary or contributing cause to nearly half a million deaths in 2018 and affected nearly half of U.S. adults – nearly 110 million people. Left uncontrolled, <a href="https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/high-blood-pressure">high blood pressure </a> can also permanently damage the heart and other parts of the body.</p>
<p>Simple changes in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2014.10.047">diet, exercise, smoking and drinking</a> can help prevent or postpone the onset of hypertension. Once a person has high blood pressure, the focus of medical care is treatment and management. But patients typically see their doctors only three to four times a year, making it difficult for physicians <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2014.10.047">to track, assess and address the root causes</a> of their hypertension. <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/MD-10-2017-1010/full/html">These visits also tend to be brief,</a> because the fee-for-service insurance payment model motivates doctors to see more patients in a given day. </p>
<p>Prior studies on the <a href="https://doi.org/10.2196/10723">effectiveness of mobile health apps for self-management of hypertension</a> were done in controlled settings in which all the participants agreed to use the app, rather than in clinical settings where patients had a choice of whether to engage with care providers using the app. We wanted to see how a hypertension patient’s use of an app played out in a real-world setting. So one of my study co-authors, a <a href="https://diabeticcareassociates.com/">practicing endocrinologist</a>, developed a proprietary web-based smartphone app to help monitor and treat hypertension between office visits. </p>
<p>Patients who received this app free of charge measured and entered their blood pressure and pulse readings. The physician reviewed these readings once a day and, if needed, recommended interventions such as new medications or changing doses of existing medications, or advised on diet and exercise. My co-author and his medical assistants weren’t paid to monitor these patients. </p>
<p>Patients and staff could also talk directly with one another through the app. This enabled regular <a href="https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-10-2017-1010">communication and joint decision-making</a> between providers and patients on how to best treat their hypertension, which in turn encouraged patients not to abandon the app after only a few uses. </p>
<p>In tracking the condition of 1,600 hypertension patients over the course of four years, we found that a typical app user reduced her <a href="https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/high-blood-pressure/understanding-blood-pressure-readings">systolic blood pressure</a> – the upper value in a blood pressure reading, indicating the pressure while the heart muscle contracts – by 2 “millimeters of mercury,” or mmHG, compared with someone not using the app. For patients with systolic blood pressure greater than 150 mmHG, the reduction was more than 6 mmHG. These were significant decreases. A reduction of 10 mmHG in systolic blood pressure lowers overall mortality risk by 13%.</p>
<p>Our study bears out the findings of other <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10729-018-9458-2">researchers who have found</a> that using mobile health apps is beneficial for managing chronic conditions.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/413427/original/file-20210727-18-1ng148f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A gray-haired woman snaps on a bike helmet. She is wearing an Apple watch." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/413427/original/file-20210727-18-1ng148f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/413427/original/file-20210727-18-1ng148f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413427/original/file-20210727-18-1ng148f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413427/original/file-20210727-18-1ng148f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413427/original/file-20210727-18-1ng148f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413427/original/file-20210727-18-1ng148f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413427/original/file-20210727-18-1ng148f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">You may be collecting health data on your phone, but does your doctor ever see it?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/woman-putting-on-cycling-helmet-royalty-free-image/1255380001">Tara Moore via Getty</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Barriers to connection</h2>
<p>These finding were promising, but there’s a catch: Many patients can’t afford to buy a mobile device and pay for its service.</p>
<p>Further, medical practices need to make a profit to survive, and there is currently no clear way for a provider to charge for <a href="https://www.iqvia.com/insights/the-iqvia-institute/reports/the-growing-value-of-digital-health">time spent</a> providing medical care via an app. However, the massive switch during the COVID-19 pandemic from in-person care to telehealth has driven many insurers <a href="https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/medicare-and-telehealth-coverage-and-use-during-the-covid-19-pandemic-and-options-for-the-future/">to figure out how to bill for services delivered remotely</a>. These solutions might eventually apply to medical health apps as well.</p>
<p>Developers also have few financial incentives to create apps that integrate with professional health care. Apps commonly earn revenues by converting users into paying customers or ongoing subscribers, or by selling advertising space within the app. The most profitable apps tend to be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2019.07.017">mobile phone games, which use psychological techniques to increase sales</a>. </p>
<p>But these would be inappropriate in the medical setting. Selling to a patient – or selling the patient’s attention to advertisers – raises questions like: Is my data safe? Is this a medically necessary sale? Does my doctor earn money from this? These concerns could reduce the trust between physician and patient <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1177%2F2333393616664823">that is essential to</a> treating chronic health conditions.</p>
<p>[<em>Get the best of The Conversation, every weekend.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/weekly-highlights-61?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=weeklybest">Sign up for our weekly newsletter</a>.]</p>
<p>And the tech has to work. Patients care about how easy it is to use an app, and whether it has the tools that they are looking for. <a href="https://mobius.md/2019/03/20/11-mobile-health-statistics/">Providers are unhappy</a> when their patients have bad experiences with technology. Further, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4029126/#b11-ptj3905356">there are no established standards ensuring</a> that mobile health apps are collecting or delivering accurate information, as there are with most professional medical monitoring equipment.</p>
<p>But as the recognition grows that properly designed health care apps can play a big role in enabling more effective medical care, we could see a major stakeholder step in and provide a monetary incentive for app development and use: the insurance carriers who benefit from lower costs of care. </p>
<p>Ultimately, the key part of treating hypertension and other chronic health problems is the interplay between patient and doctor. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097/HJH.0000000000002909">Our research shows</a> that a well-designed health app that talks not just to the user but also to the user’s care providers increases the likelihood of that engagement and leads to better treatment and better health.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/162575/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Saligrama Agnihothri does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Connecting health apps to health care can enable better care for patients with chronic diseases, and it has the potential to lower skyrocketing US health spending.Saligrama Agnihothri, Professor of Supply Chain and Business Analytics, Binghamton University, State University of New YorkLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1640902021-07-26T15:23:29Z2021-07-26T15:23:29ZThe ‘privacy by design’ approach for mobile apps: why it’s not enough<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412626/original/file-20210722-13-o8wjl7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Mobile apps on smartphones are threats to digital privacy </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/8th-grade-teacher-uses-a-smartphone-to-mark-a-swahili-news-photo/1211271275?adppopup=true">Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP via Getty Images </a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The mobile apps installed on our smartphones are one of the biggest threats to our <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/justice/article-29/documentation/opinion-recommendation/files/2013/wp202_en.pdf">digital privacy</a>. They are capable of collecting vast amounts of personal data, often highly sensitive. </p>
<p>The consent model on which privacy laws are based doesn’t work. App users remain concerned about privacy, as a recent <a href="https://www.yellowbrick.com/press-releases/yellowbrick-survey-pandemic-era-consumers-love-apps-but-have-security-concerns/">survey</a> shows, but they still aren’t very good at protecting it. They may lack the technical know-how or the time to review privacy terms, or they may lack the willpower to resist the lure of trending apps and personalised in-app offers.</p>
<p>As a result privacy laws have become more detailed, imposing additional requirements about notice, data minimisation, and user rights. Penalties have become harsher. And the laws are often global in reach, such as the <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/rules/rulemaking-regulatory-reform-proceedings/childrens-online-privacy-protection-rule">US Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule</a> and the EU’s <a href="https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32016R0679">General Data Protection Regulation</a>. For instance, a South African developer of an app downloaded by children in the US and the EU must comply with both and with <a href="https://www.gov.za/documents/protection-personal-information-act#:%7E:text=The%20Protection%20of%20Personal%20Information,by%20public%20and%20private%20bodies%3B&text=to%20regulate%20the%20flow%20of,provide%20for%20matters%20connected%20therewith.">South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act</a>. This complexity can create a significant compliance burden. </p>
<p>But the real problem, according to a <a href="https://www.enisa.europa.eu/publications/privacy-and-data-protection-in-mobile-applications">report</a> by the EU Agency for Cybersecurity, is that lawyers and app developers don’t speak the same language. An app developer may have no idea how to translate abstract legal principles into concrete engineering steps.</p>
<p>As a result regulators have looked to the concept of <a href="https://iapp.org/media/pdf/resource_center/pbd_implement_7found_principles.pdf">“privacy by design”</a> as a way to bridge this divide. The concept was coined in the late 1990s by Ann Cavoukian when she was the Information and Privacy Commissioner for Ontario, Canada. Privacy by design goes beyond privacy policies and in-app permission settings. It requires developers to think about privacy from the first moment of the design process. </p>
<p>Cavoukian set out seven foundational principles for a privacy by design approach. But it is the second principle, “privacy as a default setting”, that really sets the bar for a privacy-friendly app.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Build in the maximum degree of privacy into the default settings for any system or business practice. Doing so will keep a user’s privacy intact, even if they choose to do nothing.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This places the responsibility on the app developer to think about the user’s privacy upfront, and design the app in such a way that privacy is protected automatically, while still offering a fully functional app experience.</p>
<p>But <a href="https://researchspace.ukzn.ac.za/xmlui/handle/10413/19431">my research</a> showed that design decisions made by app developers are constrained by existing technologies and platform rules designed by others. These include the device hardware and operating system, the software development kit, ad libraries and app store review policies.</p>
<p>The answer is <a href="https://iapp.org/resources/article/06-22-2012-privacy-by-redesign-a-practical-framework-for-implementation/">privacy by (re)design</a>, where all roleplayers in the ecosystem take privacy seriously and redesign existing platforms and technologies. But enforcing that approach will require tighter legal regulation of third party data sharing.</p>
<h2>Change of mindset</h2>
<p>Applying a privacy by design approach requires a change of mindset by developers. They must be proactive, rather than responding after the fact to a data breach that could have been prevented. The days of collecting as much personal data as possible in the hope that it might prove valuable later are gone. Developers must align data collection to a specific purpose for which the data is needed and communicate that to app users. They should also anonymise or delete the data as soon as possible. </p>
<p>Privacy should become a key component of design methodology, selection of technical tools, and organisational value statements.</p>
<p>These are important changes, endorsed in guidelines for mobile app developers published by the <a href="https://iapp.org/media/pdf/resource_center/gsmaprivacydesignguidelinesformobileapplicationdevelopmentv1%20%281%29.pdf">Global System for Mobile Communications</a> and by regulators in the <a href="https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/documents/public_statements/privacy-design-and-new-privacy-framework-u.s.federal-trade-commission/120613privacydesign.pdf">US</a>, the <a href="https://ico.org.uk/media/for-organisations/documents/1596/privacy-in-mobile-apps-dp-guidance.pdf">UK</a>, <a href="https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/guidance-and-advice/mobile-privacy-a-better-practice-guide-for-mobile-app-developers/">Australia</a> and <a href="https://www.ipc.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/Resources/pbd-asu-mobile.pdf">Canada</a>, among others. In the EU “data protection by design and by default” is now <a href="https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32016R0679">a legal obligation</a> of the General Data Protection Regulation.</p>
<p>But, as my research shows, this might not be enough without the redesign of the app ecosystem to address data sharing, a view supported by other research. According to <a href="https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3201064.3201089">one study</a> most apps transmit data directly to third parties, like Google, Facebook and ad exchanges, via trackers embedded in the app code. But I found that privacy laws do not comprehensively or consistently address this third party sharing. </p>
<p>The term “third party” is not defined in the Protection of Personal Information Act, but would include ad networks, content-sharing sites and social networking platforms. Third parties are thus distinguished from downstream processors who may perform specified data processing on your behalf under a contract. </p>
<p>It is difficult to enforce legal liability against these third parties, who are often outside the country where the app was developed. Their terms and conditions typically place full responsibility for privacy compliance by the app on the app developer. This may leave app users unprotected. But it could also expose the app developer to unforeseen legal liability. </p>
<p>Liability for the app developer arises because under both the Protection of Personal Information Act and General Data Protection Regulation if you played a role in determining “the purpose or means” of data processing you are a “joint” responsible party (data controller) for the data processed by the third party. </p>
<p>The European Court of Justice has twice held small businesses liable as “joint controllers” for Facebook’s collection of data, via a <a href="https://curia.europa.eu/juris/liste.jsf?num=C-210/16">fan page</a> and a <a href="https://curia.europa.eu/juris/liste.jsf?num=C-40/17">like</a> button. Although the judgments stress that joint control is not necessarily “equal liability”, this should still be a concern for app developers.</p>
<p>For example, app developers using the Facebook Software Development Kit are sharing personal data with Facebook. Event logs such as “app installed”, “SDK initialised” and “app deactivated” give detailed demographic and behavioural insights about an app user. In 2018 Privacy International <a href="https://privacyinternational.org/report/2647/how-apps-android-share-data-facebook-report">reported</a> that the setting to delay transmission of logged events until after the user has consented was only added by Facebook 35 days after General Data Protection Regulation came into force, and then only if enabled by the developer for SDK version 4.34 or higher. This change appears to have followed repeated bug reports filed on the developer’s platform. </p>
<h2>Take aways</h2>
<p>The takeaway here for developers following a privacy by design approach is to “<a href="https://iapp.org/media/pdf/resource_center/pbd_implement_7found_principles.pdf">trust but verify</a>”:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Check contract terms and third party code carefully;</p></li>
<li><p>Monitor developer platforms for security and privacy updates;</p></li>
<li><p>Only work with organisations that offer adequate privacy guarantees;</p></li>
<li><p>Notify your users about data transfers to third parties and provide easy to use privacy controls.</p></li>
<li><p>Keep logs so that you can respond promptly if an app user requests details of the personal data you hold and the recipients (or categories of recipients) of that data.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Prosecuting app developers who breach data laws is important but not enough. Ultimately the parties who design the technologies and platforms on which mobile apps are built and marketed must be brought within the legal accountability framework to close the privacy loop.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/164090/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The financial assistance of the National Research Foundation (NRF) and University Capacity Development Programme (UCDP) is hereby gratefully acknowledged. Opinions expressed and conclusions arrived at are those of the author and are not to be attributed to the NRF. </span></em></p>Parties who design the technologies and platforms on which mobile apps are built and marketed must be brought within the legal accountability framework to close the privacy loop.Dusty-Lee Donnelly, Lecturer in Law & Advocate, High Court of South Africa, University of KwaZulu-NatalLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1621982021-06-08T15:25:20Z2021-06-08T15:25:20ZDepop sale: fashion retailers must move faster on sustainability – or they will be replaced by Gen Z apps<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405111/original/file-20210608-135197-wlz0nu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=142%2C44%2C4700%2C2537&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Secondhand shopping apps have become popular among Generation Z, who want more sustainable alternatives to fast fashion.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/online-shopping-using-application-on-phone-1868322547">Reshetnikov_art/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The news that Depop – Generation Z’s favourite app for selling and buying used clothing – had been <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2021/jun/02/etsy-buys-second-hand-clothing-app-depop-to-tap-into-gen-z">sold to Etsy for $1.6bn (£1.1bn)</a> is a warning shot for fashion retailers. </p>
<p>For years, traditional retailers and “fast fashion” companies have moved too slowly on making their production more sustainable. Etsy’s acquisition of Depop shows that shoppers, led by an eco-conscious Generation Z, are taking things into their own hands, and it has commercial appeal. </p>
<hr>
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<p><em>You can listen to more articles from The Conversation, narrated by Noa, <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/audio-narrated-99682">here</a>.</em></p>
<hr>
<h2>Fashion for an eco-conscious cohort</h2>
<p>The fashion industry has been slow to integrate sustainability practices into production and retailing, <a href="https://rgs-ibg.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/geoj.12366">leaving a gap</a> for disruptive new redistribution models to fulfil consumer preferences. </p>
<p>In 2020, new users of Depop increased by 163% from the previous year, with a <a href="https://fashionunited.uk/news/fashion/resale-growth-during-covid-19-sellers-engage-in-quarantine-clean-out-frenzies/2020060849257">200% growth in traffic and a 300% increase of sales.</a> Its immense popularity is a reflection of the success of sustainable redistribution markets, particularly among younger users. </p>
<p>The rise of Depop and other consumer-to-consumer fashion redistribution platforms and apps (such as Vinted and Vestiaire Collective) illustrate the draw of the <a href="https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/circular-economy/concept">circular economy</a> – making the most of resources already in circulation. This is especially appealing to younger consumers who are more <a href="https://fashionunited.uk/news/fashion/depop-announces-new-sustainability-vision-for-the-future/2021020153300">concerned about sustainability</a>, climate change and the future of the planet. </p>
<p>This generation has also been quick to adopt other sustainable life choices, like <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/OIR-06-2019-0213/full/html">vegan diets</a>. In contrast to the fashion industry, food suppliers from grocery stores to KFC have responded to this demand with <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/jul/25/uk-demand-for-new-vegan-food-products-soars-in-lockdown">increased availability of plant-based food products</a>.</p>
<p>Participation in the circular economy is an illustration of consumers adopting responsibility for post-consumption behaviours and actively creating opportunities for other consumers to adopt more sustainable fashion practices, with the added benefit of an income. </p>
<p>One benefit of Depop is the accessibility of the app. Generation Z are a cohort who have <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/julianvigo/2019/08/31/generation-z-and-new-technologys-effect-on-culture/?sh=291786ee5c2a">grown up with digital technology</a>, and apps are a familiar space for socialising, sharing and accessing information and consumption. Additionally, the inability to visit the high street due to the COVID-19 pandemic forced most consumption online. As consumers have grown used to their fashion being delivered, there is no disadvantage in shopping through Depop. </p>
<p>While consumers may want to buy more sustainable clothing, there are many <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/QMR-09-2019-0113/full/html">established barriers</a>, such as higher pricing, lack of fashion appeal, lack of information and misunderstanding of sustainable fashion terminology.</p>
<p>Consumers are not prepared to sacrifice their sense of self and identity in the name of sustainability, especially as many shoppers do not <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0267257X.2016.1167108">understand how the fashion industry is unsustainable</a>. Over-consumption is often a <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/ijcs.12516">response</a> to experiment with identity formation. </p>
<p>Depop gets around some of these barriers by creating a market where Gen Z are both the sellers and the buyers, so the fashion sold on the app is <a href="https://fashionunited.uk/news/fashion/depop-announces-new-sustainability-vision-for-the-future/2021020153300">specifically appealing to them</a>. This is an example of collaborative consumption, a system which includes a number of alternative practices to enable commodities to be used for longer and by a greater number of people. This may include redistribution markets, such as Depop, as a platform for exchanging used clothing, or renting and borrowing clothes, such as is found in a <a href="https://lena-library.com">fashion library system</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Five mannequins in fashionable clothing" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405110/original/file-20210608-27-8z7u6e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405110/original/file-20210608-27-8z7u6e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405110/original/file-20210608-27-8z7u6e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405110/original/file-20210608-27-8z7u6e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405110/original/file-20210608-27-8z7u6e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405110/original/file-20210608-27-8z7u6e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405110/original/file-20210608-27-8z7u6e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Fashion retailers have been slow to respond to Generation Z’s demands for more sustainable shopping, and now risk being replaced by popular secondhand clothing apps.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/new-york-march-19-2016-inside-408501382">Sorbis/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Retailers must act fast</h2>
<p>The fashion industry lags far behind on the sustainability trend. The low cost of fast fashion encourages mindless consumption, and shoppers have been vocal about calling this out – for example, the social media campaign against online retailer Pretty Little Thing for <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/nov/27/critics-slam-pretty-little-things-8p-black-friday-dress-deal">selling a dress for 8p in their sale</a>. </p>
<p>So, what can brands do to address these concerns?</p>
<p>Although some brands include a sustainable range made from organic or recycled materials, this often consists of basic items such a vests, t-shirts and leggings as opposed to “high fashion” garments. These lines are greatly overshadowed by the accelerated production of fast fashion. </p>
<p>Many retailers address sustainability by encouraging consumers to dispose of unwanted garments by donation rather than address sustainability in production and retailing – which seems like an own goal. </p>
<p>Some retailers encourage consumers to return unwanted clothing to the store – in return for a voucher to purchase new fashion. The problem of climate change and scarce resources cannot be solved through more consumption. The used clothing market in the UK is not sufficiently buoyant to resell clothes donated to stores and charity shops, meaning much of this <a href="https://oxfamilibrary.openrepository.com/bitstream/handle/10546/112464/rr-impact-second-hand-clothing-trade-developing-countries-010905-en.pdf?sequence=1">ends up in developing countries</a>, or, in the event of Brexit border delays, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/feb/03/second-hand-clothing-mountain-piles-up-as-brexit-halts-exports-to-eu">stuck in warehouses.</a></p>
<p>It is somewhat remiss that the fashion industry is so out of touch with consumer trends. The COVID-19 pandemic has <a href="https://documents.manchester.ac.uk/display.aspx?DocID=49196">altered social systems and consumption practices</a>, and solidified younger consumers’ sentiment for <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/4/1903">conscious consumption</a>. This new chapter, combined with the success of Depop, presents brands with an opportunity to <a href="https://res.mdpi.com/sustainability/sustainability-13-01861/article_deploy/sustainability-13-01861-v2.pdf">reconsider their business models.</a></p>
<p>One fashion retailer embracing this well is Cos, part of the H&M group, <a href="https://www.cosresell.com">which enables</a> consumers to buy and sell used Cos clothing online. And London department store Selfridges has opened a permanent <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2019/oct/31/selfridges-opens-secondhand-clothing-concession-with-vestiaire-collective">“pre-loved” department</a>.</p>
<p>Given the momentum of Generation Z’s preference for collaborative consumption, my colleagues and I are expanding our research to examine engagement on redistribution markets, via apps and physical events, as well as the potential for <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0148296320306408">renting fashion</a>. We will also examine whether younger consumers perceive a loss of authenticity in Depop being purchased by Etsy, as when L'Oreal <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38905530">bought the Body Shop</a>. It will be interesting to see whether the change in ownership affects the commercial activities of Depop.</p>
<p>It is clear from Etsy’s purchase of Depop that there is commercial appeal for more sustainable fashion. As alternative digital platforms for fashion grow in popularity, the fashion industry needs to change – and fast – if it wants to stay relevant.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/162198/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Elaine L Ritch does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Etsy’s purchase of Depop shows that eco-conscious fashion could threaten fast fashion retailers.Elaine L Ritch, Senior Lecturer in Marketing, Glasgow Caledonian UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1623432021-06-08T07:36:08Z2021-06-08T07:36:08ZHow an app to decrypt criminal messages was born ‘over a few beers’ with the FBI<p>Australian and US law enforcement officials on Tuesday announced they’d sprung a trap three years in the making, catching major international crime figures using an encrypted app. </p>
<p>More than 200 underworld figures in Australia have been charged in what <a href="https://www.afp.gov.au/news-media/media-releases/afp-led-operation-ironside-smashes-organised-crime">Australian Federal Police</a> (AFP) say is their biggest-ever organised crime bust.</p>
<p>The operation, led by the US Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), spanned <a href="https://www.afp.gov.au/news-media/media-releases/afp-led-operation-ironside-smashes-organised-crime">Australia and 17 other countries</a>. In Australia alone, more than 4,000 police officers were involved.</p>
<p>At the heart of the sting, dubbed Operation Ironside, was a type of “<a href="https://www.kaspersky.com.au/resource-center/threats/trojans">trojan horse</a>” malware called AN0M, which was secretly incorporated into a messaging app. After criminals used the encrypted app, police decrypted their messages, which included plots to kill, mass drug trafficking and gun distribution. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="graphic of padlock and tech symbols" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405008/original/file-20210608-28372-fecede.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405008/original/file-20210608-28372-fecede.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=366&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405008/original/file-20210608-28372-fecede.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=366&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405008/original/file-20210608-28372-fecede.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=366&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405008/original/file-20210608-28372-fecede.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=460&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405008/original/file-20210608-28372-fecede.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=460&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405008/original/file-20210608-28372-fecede.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=460&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Police used an encrypted app used by underworld figures to bust the crime network.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Millions of messages unscrambled</h2>
<p>AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-08/fbi-afp-underworld-crime-bust-an0m-cash-drugs-murder/100197246">said</a> the idea for AN0M emerged from informal discussions “over a few beers” between the AFP and FBI in 2018.</p>
<p>Platform developers had worked on the AN0M app, along with modified mobile devices, before law enforcement acquired it legally and adapted it for their use. The AFP say the developers weren’t aware of the intended use.</p>
<p>Once appropriated by law enforcement, AN0M was reportedly programmed with a secret “back door”, enabling them to access and decrypt messages in real time.</p>
<p>A “back door” is a software agent that circumvents normal access authentication. It allows remote access to private information in an application, without the “owner” of the information being aware. </p>
<p>So the users — in this case the crime figures — believed communication conducted via the app and smartphones was secure. Meanwhile, law enforcement could <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-08/fbi-afp-underworld-crime-bust-an0m-cash-drugs-murder/100197246">reportedly</a> unscramble up to 25 million encrypted messages simultaneously. </p>
<p>But without this back door, strongly encrypted messages would be almost impossible to decrypt. That’s because decryption generally requires a computer to run through trillions of possibilities before hitting on the right code to unscramble a message. Only the most powerful computers can do this within a reasonable time frame. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cryptology-from-the-crypt-how-i-cracked-a-70-year-old-coded-message-from-beyond-the-grave-122465">Cryptology from the crypt: how I cracked a 70-year-old coded message from beyond the grave</a>
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<img alt="Scott Morrison and police official stand at lecterns" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405009/original/file-20210608-19-56gpeg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405009/original/file-20210608-19-56gpeg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405009/original/file-20210608-19-56gpeg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405009/original/file-20210608-19-56gpeg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405009/original/file-20210608-19-56gpeg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405009/original/file-20210608-19-56gpeg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405009/original/file-20210608-19-56gpeg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Police programmed a secret ‘back door’ into the app to carry out the sting.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Dean Lewins/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Providers resist pressure for ‘back-door’ access</h2>
<p>In the mainstream world of encrypted communication, the installation of “back-door” access by law enforcement has been <a href="https://www.securitymagazine.com/articles/91402-facebook-refuses-to-give-law-enforcement-access-to-its-messaging-app-whatsapp">strenuously resisted</a> by app providers, including Facebook who owns WhatsApp. </p>
<p>In January 2020, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/14/apple-refuses-barr-request-to-unlock-pensacola-shooters-iphones.html">Apple refused</a> law enforcement’s request to unlock the <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/suspect-pensacola-naval-base-shooting-wrote-countdown-started/story?id=67733495">Pensacola shooting</a> suspect’s iPhone, following a deadly 2019 Florida attack which killed three people. </p>
<p>Apple, like Facebook, has long <a href="https://time.com/4262480/tim-cook-apple-fbi-2/">refused to</a> allow back-door access, <a href="https://www.apple.com/customer-letter/">claiming</a> it would undermine customer confidence. Such incidents highlight the struggle of balancing competing demands for user privacy with the imperative of preventing crime for the greater good. </p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/facebook-is-merging-messenger-and-instagram-chat-features-its-for-zuckerbergs-benefit-not-yours-147261">Facebook is merging Messenger and Instagram chat features. It's for Zuckerberg's benefit, not yours</a>
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<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="phone showing Apple and Facebook apps" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405010/original/file-20210608-25-1k3h8jb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405010/original/file-20210608-25-1k3h8jb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405010/original/file-20210608-25-1k3h8jb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405010/original/file-20210608-25-1k3h8jb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405010/original/file-20210608-25-1k3h8jb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405010/original/file-20210608-25-1k3h8jb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405010/original/file-20210608-25-1k3h8jb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Apple and Facebook have refused to allow back-door access, claiming it would undermine customer confidence.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Getting criminals to use AN0M</h2>
<p>Once AN0M was developed and ready for use, law enforcement had to get it into the hands of criminal “underworld” figures. </p>
<p>To do so, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-08/fbi-afp-underworld-crime-bust-an0m-cash-drugs-murder/100197246">undercover agents</a> reportedly persuaded fugitive Australian drug trafficker Hakan Ayik to unwittingly champion the app to his associates. These associates were then be sold mobile devices pre-loaded with AN0M on the black market. </p>
<p>Purchase was only possible if referred through an existing user of the app, or by a distributor who could vouch for the potential customer as not working for law enforcement. </p>
<p>The AN0M-loaded mobiles — likely Android-powered smartphones — came with reduced functionality. They could do just three things: send and receive messages, make distorted voice calls and record videos — all of which was presumed to be encrypted by the users. </p>
<p>With time the AN0M phone increasingly became the device of choice for a significant number of criminal networks. </p>
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<img alt="Police official points to screen showing phones and monitor" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405012/original/file-20210608-135198-15ty3ry.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405012/original/file-20210608-135198-15ty3ry.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405012/original/file-20210608-135198-15ty3ry.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405012/original/file-20210608-135198-15ty3ry.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405012/original/file-20210608-135198-15ty3ry.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405012/original/file-20210608-135198-15ty3ry.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405012/original/file-20210608-135198-15ty3ry.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The AN0M-loaded devices were mobiles — likely Android-powered smartphones — but with reduced functionality.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Dean Lewins/AAP</span></span>
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</figure>
<h2>Building up a network picture</h2>
<p>Since 2018, law enforcement agencies across 18 countries, including Australia, had been patiently listening to millions of conversations through their back-door control of the AN0M app. </p>
<p>Information was retrieved on all manner of illegal activities. This gradually enabled police to etch a detailed picture of various crime networks. Some of the footage and images retrieved have been <a href="https://www.afp.gov.au/news-media/media-releases/afp-led-operation-ironside-smashes-organised-crime">cleared for public release</a>.</p>
<p>One major challenge was for police to match overheard conversations with <a href="https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2021/06/what-is-the-an0m-app-and-how-was-it-used-to-catch-kiwi-criminals.html">identities</a> — as the AN0M phone could be purchased anonymously and paid for with Bitcoin (which allows secure transactions that can’t be traced). This may help explain why it took three years before police openly identified alleged perpetrators. </p>
<p>It’s likely the evidence obtained will be used in prosecutions now that a multitude of arrests have been made. </p>
<h2>The future of encryption</h2>
<p>Encryption technology is improving fast. It needs to — because computing power is also growing rapidly.</p>
<p>This means hackers are becoming increasingly capable of breaking encryption. Moreover, when quantum computers become available this problem will be further exacerbated, since they are massively more powerful than conventional computers today.</p>
<p>These developments will likely weaken the security of encrypted messaging apps used by law abiding people, including popular apps such as WhatsApp, LINE and Signal.</p>
<p>Strong encryption is an essential weapon in the cybersecurity arsenal and there are thousands of legitimate situations where it’s needed. It’s ironic then, that the technology intended by some to keep the public safe can also be leveraged by those with criminal intent. </p>
<p>Networks of organised crime have used these “legitmate” tools to conduct their business, secure in the knowledge that law enforcement can’t access their communications. Until AN0M, that is. </p>
<p>And while Operation Ironside may have sent a shiver through criminal subcultures operating around the world, these syndicates will likely develop their own countermeasures in this ongoing game of cat and mouse.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/seven-ways-the-government-can-make-australians-safer-without-compromising-online-privacy-111091">Seven ways the government can make Australians safer – without compromising online privacy</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/162343/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Tuffley does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The AN0M app was programmed by law enforcement to allow ‘back-door’ access. This led to the retrieval of information that culminated in hundreds of search warrants.David Tuffley, Senior Lecturer in Applied Ethics & CyberSecurity, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1600432021-05-11T14:39:51Z2021-05-11T14:39:51ZPilgrimage in a pandemic: lessons from Mecca on containing COVID-19<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398665/original/file-20210504-22-1kzedqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Muslim worshippers perform the evening Tarawih prayer during the fasting month of Ramadan around the Kaaba in the Grand Mosque complex in the holy city of Mecca, on April 13, 2021. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AFP via Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>As a Muslim, at least once a year I go on pilgrimage to Mecca, Islam’s holiest city, located in Saudi Arabia. Muslims perform the short “Umrah” pilgrimage at any time of the year, and there could be <a href="https://saudigazette.com.sa/article/592545">over</a> 19 million pilgrims each year. I have also been to Mecca a couple of times for “Hajj” – the annual major pilgrimage. Held once a year, this is a mass gathering of <a href="https://saudigazette.com.sa/article/592545">over</a> 2.5 million Muslims. </p>
<p>Both the Umrah and Hajj pilgrimages weren’t possible for most of 2020 <a href="https://theconversation.com/hajj-cancellation-due-to-coronavirus-is-not-the-first-time-plague-has-disrupted-this-muslim-pilgrimage-135900">due to</a> the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. </p>
<p>However, Saudi Arabia as a whole has <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/covid-resilience-ranking/">fared well</a> in handling the pandemic. It’s had low mortality rates and minimal social <a href="https://insights.omnia-health.com/hospital-management/prompt-action-defines-saudi-arabias-success-story-emerging-covid-19">and</a> economic disruption. There’s been widespread testing and vaccine access. This allowed it to open up for pilgrims. </p>
<p>I had avoided travel to minimise unnecessary exposure to the new coronavirus, SARS-COV-2. But <a href="https://www.haramainsharifain.com/2021/04/how-can-foreign-pilgrims-perform-umrah.html">information</a> on stringent rules to ensure the safety of pilgrims in Mecca encouraged me to go. </p>
<p>As a pathologist who has been at the forefront of tracing the spread of the new coronavirus in Kenya, I was impressed by what I experienced in Saudi Arabia. </p>
<p>I believe there are valuable lessons here for other countries where mass religious gatherings <a href="http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20120119-travelwise-10-sites-of-religious-pilgrimage">take place</a>. The strategies could also be emulated by specific industries – such as hospitality and tourism, sports and entertainment. These also handle large numbers of people and need to balance public health and the protection of people’s livelihood.</p>
<h2>Test and quarantine</h2>
<p>For starters, the Saudi authorities required foreign pilgrims to have a negative PCR test result. These had to be taken within 48 hours before arrival in Saudi Arabia. </p>
<p>Upon arrival, all pilgrims either had to do a mandatory quarantine at a government approved hotel for six days, or take a PCR test after 48 hours of quarantine and, if it was negative, could leave the hotel. Travellers from countries categorised as <a href="https://www.who.int/teams/health-product-and-policy-standards/access-to-assistive-technology-medical-devices/medical-devices/policies/high-risk-countries">“high-risk”</a> were required to do a mandatory seven day quarantine, but also needed to have a negative PCR test upon completion.</p>
<p>In addition, all pilgrims who wanted a permit to enter Haram – the Grand Mosque of Mecca – needed to have a COVID-19 vaccination certificate. </p>
<p>It’s important to use all these measures as they add layers of protection and prevent situations from becoming super-spreader events. A negative PCR test alone may not be enough. There’s always the risk of a <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/covid-tests-rt-pcr-coronavirus-negative-result-7297329/">false negative</a> for technical reasons or due to <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-55092387">fraud</a>. There have been <a href="https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/covid-19-kenya-added-to-uk-red-list-travel-ban-3346510">reports of</a> large numbers of travellers testing positive at their destination points after testing negative at departure.</p>
<h2>Social distancing</h2>
<p>Before COVID-19, there would be congestion and crowding. This time the flow of people within the Grand Mosque was well organised. A limited number of worshippers were allowed in at a time and there was clear demarcation to ensure physical distancing. Police and mosque orderlies monitored and directed the pilgrims.</p>
<p>Face masks – <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/masks-protect-you-and-me.html">which</a> provide a barrier and keep the new coronavirus from spreading – were mandatory. <a href="https://www.arabnews.com/node/1682441/saudi-arabia">Harsh penalties</a> were imposed on anyone not wearing a mask or trying to enter the Haram without a valid permit. <a href="https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/Ministry/MediaCenter/News/Pages/News-2020-11-08-007.aspx">Daily text messages</a> reminded us about the penalties and public health measures.</p>
<p>The markedly restricted number of pilgrims – to 50,000 a day from a huge capacity of hundreds of thousands – made it easier to manage people and enforce measures. </p>
<p>In addition, the iftar meal – taken at the break of fasting – was provided in neatly sealed packages. Indicated by a label, these were prepared under stringent hygiene conditions eliminating the risk of the SARS-CoV-2 transmission from handling. In the past pilgrims would eat these meals together, sometimes from communal plates. This is a high risk situation for the virus transmission. </p>
<p>Also, unlike before when people would crowd to collect <a href="https://www.arabnews.com/node/1712901/saudi-arabia">ZamZam holy water</a> from watering points, it was dispensed by mobile porters. They poured water from portable backpack tanks and also dished out sealed bottled water. </p>
<h2>Mobile apps</h2>
<p>An innovative intervention was the use of mobile apps to record, track and monitor all COVID-19 related personal records. These included test results and vaccination status. The apps were also used to apply for access to move around in public places. We were told which apps to download by our Umrah travel agent. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=sa.gov.nic.tawakkalna&hl=en&gl=US">Tawakkalna app</a> is being used across the country for contact tracing. It’s the most important app, needed to access every place you go, for instance every shop, restaurant, hotel and vehicle. This app required a record of PCR results and vaccination to enable entry.</p>
<p>Those with a positive PCR were barred from moving around. <a href="https://www.arabnews.com/node/1804601/saudi-arabia">The app</a> has a constant location tracker and warns if someone is out of their allowed zone.</p>
<p>If groups wanted to gather for social events they would use the Tawakkalna app to apply for a gathering permit. The app would then provide contact tracing in the case of any positive case emerging after the event.</p>
<p>For pilgrims wanting access to the Haram, there is an app called <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sejel.eatamrna&hl=en&gl=US">Eatmarna</a>. Created by the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah (the government’s ministry dedicated to pilgrim matters) the Eatmarna app allows pilgrims to book a specific time-slot for access to the Grand Mosque, meaning numbers are capped. The app is also linked to the Tawakkalna app <a href="https://www.haj.gov.sa/en/InternalPages/Details/10234">which means</a> access is granted based on COVID-19 status.</p>
<p>As a foreign pilgrim, I was issued with a bar-coded wrist band that could be scanned to confirm my status in case I couldn’t display my Tawakkalna or Eatmarna status. </p>
<p><a href="https://english.alarabiya.net/coronavirus/2020/06/28/Saudi-Arabia-s-coronavirus-social-distancing-app-Tabaud-All-you-need-to-know">Tabaud</a> was another app that was used. It’s a social-distancing app which, using bluetooth, can check on the Tawakkalna app of people around you. It essentially warns of people nearby who have tested positive.</p>
<p>As a pathologist, I see these apps as crucial in preventing the spread of the new coronavirus. They limit crowding and also allow for the movement of those who are safe while restricting those who are unsafe. </p>
<p>Apps that track people’s movements – and that store their medical and personal data – do raise <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/techstream/inaccurate-and-insecure-why-contact-tracing-apps-could-be-a-disaster/">privacy concerns</a>, particularly if the data falls into the wrong hands or is misused. </p>
<p>However I also feel that their use is a price that we need to pay in these unprecedented times, and steps <a href="https://www.ictworks.org/protect-digital-privacy-security-covid-19-response/">can be taken</a> to protect the data. </p>
<h2>Avoiding superspreader events</h2>
<p>In the past, Mecca was a convergence point for millions of pilgrims and has always been a flashpoint for the spread of various contagious diseases, including <a href="http://www.ph.ucla.edu/EPI/snow/pandemic1826-37.html">cholera</a>.</p>
<p>Strict and decisive steps taken for mass gatherings can prevent them from becoming superspreader hotspots, as has happened in <a href="https://qz.com/india/2006872/lancet-editorial-blames-modi-for-mismanaging-indias-covid-crisis/">India</a> and <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jtm/article/27/3/taaa044/5817958">Iran</a>.</p>
<p>Saudi Arabia’s handling of the pilgrimage provides many lessons worth emulating by sectors and events that bring together large numbers of people, including sports, religion, entertainment and hospitality industries. </p>
<p>People wishing to use these facilities would have to accept that to enjoy these privileges they would need to be checked and monitored – for the welfare of everyone. </p>
<p>Of particular interest is the use of mobile phone technology which could be a very potent tool in combating the pandemic in all countries, including <a href="https://www.geopoll.com/blog/mobile-phone-penetration-africa/">those in Africa</a>, where internet and mobile phone penetration is high.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/160043/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ahmed Kalebi does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Entertainment, sports and tourism industries can learn valuable lessons from how Saudi Arabia managed the annual pilgrimage during a pandemic.Ahmed Kalebi, Independent Consultant Pathologist & Hon. Lecturer, Department of Human Pathology, University of NairobiLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1444492020-09-28T20:40:55Z2020-09-28T20:40:55ZDigital technologies will help build resilient communities after the coronavirus pandemic<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359825/original/file-20200924-19-cjdz0g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5455%2C3075&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The coronavirus pandemic has resulted in increased adoption of communication and network technologies.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Amid the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-01953-x">horrific public health and economic fallout from a fast-moving pandemic</a>, a more positive phenomenon is playing out: COVID-19 has provided opportunities to businesses, universities and communities to become hothouses of innovation. </p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-disruption-a-chance-for-businesses-to-adapt-and-renew-135516">Coronavirus disruption: A chance for businesses to adapt and renew</a>
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<p>Around the world, digital technologies are driving high-impact interventions. Community and public health leaders are handling time-sensitive tasks and meeting pressing needs with technologies that are affordable and inclusive, and don’t require much technical knowledge.</p>
<p>Our research reveals the outsized impact of inexpensive, <a href="https://smith.queensu.ca/insight/content/lightweight-digital-tech-can-do-heavy-lifting-when-disaster-strikes.php">readily available digital technologies</a>. In the midst of a maelstrom, these technologies — among them social media, mobile apps, analytics and <a href="https://www.zdnet.com/article/what-is-cloud-computing-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-cloud/">cloud computing</a> — help communities cope with the pandemic and learn crucial lessons. </p>
<p>To gauge how this potential is playing out, our research team looked at how communities incorporate readily available digital technologies in their responses to disasters.</p>
<h2>Community potential</h2>
<p>As a starting point, we used a model of crisis management developed in 1988 by <a href="https://mitroff.net/">organizational theorist Ian Mitroff</a>. The model has five phases: </p>
<ul>
<li>signal detection to identify warning signs</li>
<li>probing and prevention to actively search and reduce risk factors</li>
<li>damage containment to limit its spread</li>
<li>recovery to normal operations</li>
<li>learning to glean actionable insights to apply to the next incident </li>
</ul>
<p>Although this model was developed for organizations dealing with crises, it is applicable to communities under duress and has been used to <a href="https://sprott.carleton.ca/2020/sprott-business-insights-crisis-management/">analyze organizational responses to the current pandemic</a>.</p>
<p>Our research showed that readily available digital technologies can be deployed effectively during each phase of a crisis.</p>
<h2>Phase 1: Signal detection</h2>
<p>Being able to identify potential threats from rivers of data is no easy task. Readily available digital technologies such as social media and mobile apps are useful for signal detection. They offer connectivity any time and anywhere, and allow for rapid sharing and transmission of information. </p>
<p>New Zealand, for example, has been exploring an <a href="https://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/handle/2292/20759">early warning system for landslides</a> based on both internet-of-things sensors and digital transmission through social media channels such as Twitter.</p>
<h2>Phase 2: Prevention and preparation</h2>
<p>Readily available digital technologies such as cloud computing and analytics enable remote and decentralized activities to support training and simulations that heighten community preparedness. The federal government, for example, has developed <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/covid-pandemic-app-ontario-1.5670239">the COVID Alert app for mobile devices</a> that will tell users whether they have been near someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 during the previous two weeks.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/70-of-people-surveyed-said-theyd-download-a-coronavirus-app-only-44-did-why-the-gap-138427">70% of people surveyed said they'd download a coronavirus app. Only 44% did. Why the gap?</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<h2>Phase 3: Containment</h2>
<p>Although crises cannot always be averted, they can be contained. Big data analytics can isolate hot spots and “<a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-superspreading-events-drive-most-covid-19-spread1/">superspreaders</a>,” limiting exposure of larger populations to the virus. Taiwan implemented <a href="https://www.techuk.org/insights/news/item/17187-how-taiwan-used-tech-to-fight-covid-19">active surveillance and screening systems</a> to quickly react to COVID-19 cases and implement measures to control its spread.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359883/original/file-20200924-24-1zkld5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A Taiwanese postal worker holding a thermometer." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359883/original/file-20200924-24-1zkld5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359883/original/file-20200924-24-1zkld5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359883/original/file-20200924-24-1zkld5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359883/original/file-20200924-24-1zkld5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359883/original/file-20200924-24-1zkld5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359883/original/file-20200924-24-1zkld5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359883/original/file-20200924-24-1zkld5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A woman checks temperatures at the entrance to a post office in Taipei, Taiwan amid the COVID-19 pandemic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Phase 4: Recovery</h2>
<p>Social capital, personal and community networks and shared post-crisis communication are essential factors for the recovery process. Readily available digital technologies can help a community get back on its feet by enabling people to share experiences and resource information. </p>
<p>For example, residents of Fort McMurray, Alta., have experienced the pandemic, <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/fort-mcmurray-flood-damage-1.5673962">flooding</a> and <a href="https://srd.web.alberta.ca/fort-mcmurray-area-update/all">the threat of wildfires</a>. As part of the response, the provincial government offers northern Alberta residents <a href="https://www.albertahealthservices.ca/news/Page15494.aspx">virtual addiction treatment support via Zoom videoconferencing</a>. </p>
<p>During recovery, it is also important to foster equity to avoid a privileged set of community members receiving preferential services. To address this need, <a href="https://str.sg/Jpne">anti-hoarding apps</a> for personal protective equipment and apps that promote <a href="https://www.volunteerlocal.com/">volunteerism</a> can prove useful.</p>
<h2>Phase 5: Learning</h2>
<p>It is usually difficult for communities to gather knowledge on recovery and renewal from multiple sources. Readily available digital technologies can be used to provide local and remote computing power, enable information retrieval and analysis and disseminate emergent knowledge. The <a href="https://news.microsoft.com/2020/04/19/unicef-and-microsoft-launch-global-learning-platform-to-help-address-covid-19-education-crisis/">global learning platform launched by UNICEF and Microsoft</a> helps youth affected by COVID-19.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1252219771346653184"}"></div></p>
<h2>A sixth phase</h2>
<p>Our research suggests a sixth phase of crisis management: community resilience, which is the sustained ability of communities to withstand, adapt to and recover from adversity. Communities must <a href="https://www.arunrai.net/s/EdommentsV44_I2-The-COVID-19-Pandemic-Building-Resilience-with-IS-Research.pdf">develop the capacity to absorb the impact of pandemics</a> and other disasters. </p>
<p>When face-to-face interactions are limited — like in a pandemic — readily available digital technologies can enable community participation through social media groups, virtual meeting software and cloud- and mobile-driven engagement and decision-making platforms.</p>
<p>Technologies that provide transparent information services such as analytics-based dashboards and real-time updates can create a sense of equity and caring. Apps and portals can connect vulnerable populations to critical care, resources and infrastructure services. </p>
<p>For example, the government of Karnataka, India, partnered with local vendors and hyper-local food delivery services for <a href="https://inc42.com/buzz/karnataka-rolls-out-delivery-helpline-for-grocery-essentials-in-bengaluru/">home delivery of groceries and other essential materials for households quarantined because of the COVID-19 pandemic</a>.</p>
<p>Readily available digital technologies help remote communities develop a sense of belonging, sharing and self-efficacy while incrementally building shared knowledge over multiple crises.</p>
<h2>Moving forward</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92467/">2003 SARS epidemic</a> taught us valuable lessons about the use of technology during a pandemic. At the time, readily available digital technologies were largely overlooked, because bigger and more expensive solutions were the focus.</p>
<p>In responding to the present circumstances, it is time we explore the benefit of common technologies. The federal government’s <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/office-infrastructure/news/2020/08/direct-help-for-bright-ideas-to-make-safer-pandemic-resilient-communities.html">recent announcement of funding</a> to support the use of digital solutions in community responses to COVID-19 is a promising step. </p>
<p><a href="http://digitalcapital.li/?p=582">Investing in resilient infrastructure</a> is also important, since communities depend on public digital infrastructure for access to the internet and other telecommunication networks. This infrastructure must be affordable, sustainable and inclusive.</p>
<p>But we should not lose sight of the need to support communities in developing their own resiliency — to help them envision their own solutions using readily available digital technologies.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/144449/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Yolande E. Chan receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Arman Sadreddin and Suchit Ahuja do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Internet technologies and the devices that enable information access and transfer are useful in crisis management. Accessing these readily available digital technologies can help community resiliency.Yolande E. Chan, Associate Dean (Research & PhD/MSc Programs) and E. Marie Shantz Professor of Information Technology Management, Queen's University, OntarioArman Sadreddin, Assistant Professor, Business Technology Management, Concordia UniversitySuchit Ahuja, Assistant Professor, Business Technology Management, Concordia UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1445412020-08-26T12:22:46Z2020-08-26T12:22:46ZTikTok is a unique blend of social media platforms – here’s why kids love it<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/354464/original/file-20200824-14-674d5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4913%2C3275&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Young people creating a TikTok video in Lithuania.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/members-of-local-social-media-star-the-trending-gang-dance-news-photo/1228117350?adppopup=true">Photo by Alfredas Pliadis/Xinhua via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>TikTok, a social media platform targeted at young mobile phone users, was the <a href="https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-most-downloaded-apps/">second-most downloaded app in the world</a> in 2019. It was the <a href="https://sensortower.com/blog/top-apps-worldwide-july-2020-by-downloads">most downloaded app</a> in July 2020.</p>
<p>As a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=sdMlz0kAAAAJ&hl=en">political scientist</a> who studies social media, I’ve looked at what makes TikTok unique and why young people have flocked to it. In short, the phone-only app lets users record themselves dancing or goofing around to a music or spoken-word clip and then alter the videos using a wide array of effects. Despite its superficially frivolous nature, young people have been using the platform to <a href="http://www.favstats.eu/docs/political_tiktok">send political messages</a>, <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-rally-tiktok-crowds-tulsa/">coordinate political actions</a> and hang out in an online space largely free of adults.</p>
<h2>How it works</h2>
<p>Each tiktok is a 3- to 60-second-long video that loops when finished. The majority of the screen is taken up by the video uploaded by the user. The app offers a wide range of options for customizing and combining these videos, including video taken with the user’s smartphone, photos uploaded from the web, emojis and other text superimposed on the video, and special effects. The app’s library of filters and video-distorting effects is like Instagram filters but for video. </p>
<p>The bottom of the screen contains information about the “sound”: the audio file that accompanies the video. These “sounds” can either be user-uploaded or chosen from a library of popular sounds. This library contains both snippets of songs by professional musicians and silly recordings of people talking. “Sounds” have had a huge impact on the music industry: “Old Town Road,” one of the most popular songs of all time, <a href="https://www.thrillist.com/entertainment/nation/old-town-road-lil-nas-x-memes-explained">first gained popularity</a> as a TikTok “sound” with an associated dance. </p>
<p>When you open the app, you encounter a tiktok that starts playing. This is the “For You Page,” which plays tiktoks that TikTok’s algorithm recommends for you. To go to the next tiktok, you swipe up. To see the account that uploaded the current tiktok, swipe right. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Smart phone screen showing thumbnails of video clips" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/354465/original/file-20200824-22-16tyze0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/354465/original/file-20200824-22-16tyze0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/354465/original/file-20200824-22-16tyze0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/354465/original/file-20200824-22-16tyze0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/354465/original/file-20200824-22-16tyze0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/354465/original/file-20200824-22-16tyze0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/354465/original/file-20200824-22-16tyze0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Comedian Sarah Cooper’s TikTok page shows thumbnails of her videos, or tiktoks, on the social media platform.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/in-this-photo-illustration-comedian-sarah-coopers-page-is-news-photo/1227952343?adppopup=true">Photo Illustration by Drew Angerer/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How it compares</h2>
<p>Comparing TikTok with other digital media platforms shows what makes it unique. Like YouTube, TikTok consists entirely of videos. Like Facebook and Twitter the primary mode of consuming tiktoks is by navigating through a “feed” of short, digestible posts. </p>
<p>Like Netflix, the default mode of encountering content is through the recommendation algorithm, not through the construction of “friend” or “follower” networks. And like Snapchat and Instagram, TikTok can only be produced on mobile phones, favoring younger users who are more fluent with smartphones than computers.</p>
<p>TikTok is the first social media platform to combine these characteristics. The result is a unique way of conveying and consuming information. </p>
<h2>Information density</h2>
<p>The combination of video media and the “feed” makes TikTok especially information dense. There’s a lot going on with each tiktok, and there is a never-ending stream of tiktoks.</p>
<p>Unlike text, video media operates on two parallel pathways, conveying explicit information (the kind found in speech or writing) and implicit information (social cues like the TikToker’s clothes and hairstyle, or emotional affect from music) at the same time. </p>
<iframe src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/6864935703323675910?lang=en-US" style="border:0;width:100%;min-height:825px;" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>The “feed” enables a social media consumer to scan through several pieces of bite-sized content per minute, extracting information in a much more efficient fashion than from a television broadcast. In combination, these trends make scrolling through the “For You Page” a whirlwind experience, a significant advance in information density. </p>
<p>If you spend a few hours on TikTok, you’ll see how this works. Other media begins to feel “slow,” even formerly compelling products like a YouTube video or Twitter feed. Younger people tend to love intensity – loud music, bright lights – and its no surprise they find TikTok compelling.</p>
<h2>Different costs and benefits</h2>
<p>TikTok also shifts the costs and benefits of posting. On the costs side, because TikTok is designed for smartphones it’s easier for some people to use, and harder for others. As a general rule, the more years of your life you spend using a technology – and the earlier in the life cycle those years are – the more skilled you become at using that technology. </p>
<p>TikTok also encourages videos filmed in the vertical orientation inherent to smartphones, so they can be created wherever the user goes, whenever they have a spare moment. </p>
<p>In terms of benefits, the importance of the recommendation algorithm over “friend” networks means that everyone is guaranteed to get at least a few views, even on their first tiktok. On Twitter, say, you might log on and tweet dozens of times before you get any “likes” due to the importance of “follower” networks in determining what people see. </p>
<p>TikTok’s “For You Page” varies between showing the user extremely popular tiktoks and tiktoks with only a handful of views, thus promoting greater equality than on traditional social networks. Overall, TikTok offers an online platform for young people that feels unusually disconnected from the adult world, one in which they are sure to get some amount of attention.</p>
<h2>Common sounds, unique moves</h2>
<p>Finally, the “sounds” that users combine with their personalized videos represent a novel way to categorize and navigate a social media platform, a feature unique to TikTok. If you click on the “sound” at the bottom of a tiktok, you can see all of the other tiktoks that use that sound file. </p>
<p>The most common example involves a specific dance routine paired with the accompanying “sound.” The audio is constant across this group of tiktoks, but each user provides a unique video of themselves performing the dance.</p>
<p>These dances are examples of TikTok memes. “Memes” on more text- or image-focused platforms involve some fixed “meme format” that is then remixed by users who edit the image or text to create a given “meme.” On TikTok, however, the raw material being remixed is the user’s body, as the user performs the behavior associated with the meme format, what I call “embodied memes.” </p>
<p>[ <em><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@theconversation">Follow The Conversation U.S. on TikTok: @TheConversation</a>.</em> ]</p>
<p>This makes the body much more prominent on TikTok than other platforms. Whereas clever wordplay goes a long way on Twitter, TikTok rewards conventionally attractive or otherwise striking bodies to an even greater extent than Instagram. </p>
<p>This also means that the identity categories that are increasingly central to politics <a href="https://www.wired.co.uk/article/tiktok-filter-bubbles">play a major role on TikTok</a>. Embodied memes often play with the race, gender, appearance or physical location of the TikToker.</p>
<p>More conventional image memes can seem anonymous or disembodied as they are shared around the web. With TikTok, it’s impossible to separate the individual from the meme.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/144541/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kevin Munger does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>An app that young people use to share videos of themselves dancing might seem like a silly diversion, but it’s become a powerhouse social media platform.Kevin Munger, Assistant Professor of Political Science and Social Data Analytics, Penn StateLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1436112020-08-02T08:34:04Z2020-08-02T08:34:04ZHow apps on mobile phones are changing Zimbabwe’s talk radio<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/350380/original/file-20200730-17-1ol2tw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Artist Kudakwashe Chigodo poses for a portrait with his smartphone in Harare.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jekesai Njikizana/AFP/Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In Africa, radio still has wider geographical <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/worldradioday-why-radio-is-still-going-strong-in-africa/a-52355828">reach</a> and higher audiences than any other information and communication technology, including television and newspapers. </p>
<p>Like the rest of the world, African radio is breaking away from being an analogue communication tool that relies on top down information flows to one that relies on multiple feedback loops. The main driver of this is digital media technologies.</p>
<p>It’s a trend I examine in <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13696815.2018.1551125?journalCode=cjac20">a paper</a> called Mobile Phones and a Million Chatter: Performed Inclusivity and Silenced Voices in Zimbabwean Talk Radio. I wanted to observe what is really happening at the convergence between radio, smartphones and related mobile-based applications such as WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter. </p>
<p>I found that apps like WhatsApp have indeed grown public discourse by connecting more voices to participate in live talkback radio – but this came with new challenges as newsrooms experience an oversupply of digital information from audiences.</p>
<h2>A radio station in Harare</h2>
<p>I set out to <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13696815.2018.1551125?journalCode=cjac20">study</a> a local radio station in Harare, the capital of <a href="https://en.unesco.org/news/world-radio-day-2020-radio-and-diversity">Zimbabwe</a> through live studio ethnography and sustained interviews with radio producers and 21 audience members, the latter largely working class Harare residents. </p>
<p>Unsurprisingly, both producers and audiences found the convergence between radio and mobile phones is stretching out the communicative space. It allows more inclusive, seamless and real time debate between radio hosts and audiences. There was a strong feeling that radio continues to inculcate a sense of imagined community. One producer said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Because we have a dedicated mobile line for WhatsApp, our programme has grown a bit in popularity and we know some of our listeners in person. Some of them visit us during the day just to explain a point discussed in the previous show or even to give us story leads.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>And one of the listeners told me:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I tune in to radio through my mobile phone while I am selling vegetables on the market. I know that my neighbour is listening to this show also.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Apps like WhatsApp have become so pervasive and immersed in our everyday lives that many more people can now easily communicate with larger numbers of contacts than before. In the context of live talk radio, mobile phones are allowing more people to cheaply and conveniently access studio debates.</p>
<p>Prior to the emergence of digital media technologies, land lines were expensive and not nearly as widely domesticated as mobile phones are today. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/radio-in-ghana-from-mouthpiece-of-coup-plotters-to-giving-voice-to-the-people-131709">Radio in Ghana: from mouthpiece of coup plotters to giving voice to the people</a>
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<p>By 2017, WhatApp was already by far the <a href="https://qz.com/africa/1114551/in-zimbabwe-whatsapp-takes-nearly-half-of-all-internet-traffic/">most popular</a> app in Zimbabwe. It accounts for up to 44% of all mobile internet usage in a country where 98% of all internet usage is mobile. According to Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe, promotional WhatsApp and Facebook <a href="https://www.techzim.co.zw/2017/01/econet-wireless-zimbabwes-new-data-whatsapp-facebook-bundles-prices/">access bundles</a>, marketed by the country’s mobile operators, are helping drive up use of these platforms.</p>
<h2>The digital downside</h2>
<p>However, there’s also a downside to the advent of digital media technologies and digitalised newsrooms. Observing live studio shows I witnessed a number of structural constraints.</p>
<p>For example, while radio audiences may celebrate the possibilities of easily sending critical questions via WhatsApp to studio hosts, an apparently unintended consequence was that the journalist managing live studio debates struggled to read out all the messages received. The studio WhatsApp number commonly becomes congested. </p>
<p>Some messages and comments are left unread and get buried under an avalanche of newer ones popping up on the screen, in turn buried under even newer ones. Once this happens, it’s hard to tell how many quality contributions have been lost by not being read. So not all voices reaching the studio get a fair chance of being heard. </p>
<p>I call these unintended constraints, though, because they are not necessarily a result of failure by journalists and producers. They are more a technical setback in which an oversupply of information via dedicated WhatsApp lines eluded even the most astute radio presenter.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-community-radio-has-contributed-to-building-peace-a-kenyan-case-study-141622">How community radio has contributed to building peace: a Kenyan case study</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<p>In addition, some messages reaching the studio WhatsApp channel were so badly typed that they would be set aside, the journalist preferring to read out only well-typed messages. Newsroom pressures and deadlines associated with broadcast media mean that there isn’t the luxury of spending too much time on one question. </p>
<p>In mass communication studies, these are seen as exclusionary practices in live radio talkback shows.</p>
<h2>Democratising the airwaves</h2>
<p>Democracy is normatively seen as thriving in environments where all voices, opinions and views across <a href="https://medium.com/center-for-media-data-and-society/radio-gains-in-diversity-in-most-of-africa-fdeb03669d08">diverse</a> population profiles are respected and given a fair chance of representation.</p>
<p>My study showed that, at least in terms of volume, the convergence between radio and mobile phones is stretching out the public sphere to accommodate more voices. </p>
<p>Digital technologies are allowing for new participants to engage actively with radio.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/143611/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stanley Tsarwe does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Apps like WhatsApp have connected more voices to participate in live talk radio - but this comes with new challenges.Stanley Tsarwe, Journalism Lecturer, University of ZimbabweLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1222802020-03-27T12:14:12Z2020-03-27T12:14:12ZScreen time that supports new parents and young kids can enhance family health<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323436/original/file-20200326-133027-10bwr7o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C307%2C4451%2C3351&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Babies don't come with instruction manuals... mobile health apps can help new parents.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/new-jersey-jersey-city-woman-texting-and-holding-royalty-free-image/525445885">Tetra Images via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Screen time for little kids takes a lot of heat under normal conditions. The American Academy of Pediatrics’ official recommendations urge families to be <a href="https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/news-features-and-safety-tips/Pages/Children-and-Media-Tips.aspx">thoughtful and judicious about screen time</a> for youngsters from birth to age five. And there is evidence that too much technology can lead to <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-its-wrong-for-pediatricians-to-eliminate-daily-screen-time-recommendations-49408">loss of child development opportunities</a>.</p>
<p>But technology can also connect families to important parenting and educational opportunities, especially at a time when people are sheltering in place and avoiding health care facilities for all but the most pressing concerns. The current generation of parents are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-46590-5_2">digital natives</a> themselves, having grown up in an era when internet was readily accessible. They often prefer technological solutions for their families.</p>
<p>We are <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&authuser=2&user=DQ0Q4ekAAAAJ">a professor of social work</a> and <a href="https://keck.usc.edu/faculty-search/ashwini-lakshmanan/">a neonatologist</a> interested in how using internet-supported technologies – including apps, voice and text messaging, videoconferencing and e-learning platforms – can ease the parenting burden and promote healthy development. Reducing burdens on parents and increasing access to parent support are vital elements in helping families raise healthy children.</p>
<h2>Trusted info within arm’s reach</h2>
<p>Users can access apps, websites and programs from their cellphones or computers to receive information about medical tests, screenings and how to make healthier choices.</p>
<p>Phone apps can put trusted medical information right into a parent’s hand. Users can skip the hassle of having to visit a clinic or class. Health care providers recommend free apps like <a href="http://nicu2home.com">NICU2Home</a>, Providence Hospital Systems’ <a href="https://www.providence.org/services/circle-app">Circle</a> and March of Dimes’ <a href="https://www.marchofdimes.org/nicufamilysupport/my-nicu-baby-app.aspx">My NICU Baby</a> to their patients as sources of tips and helpful videos about how to care for a baby. The apps can help do things like track breastfeeding sessions, baby’s sleep patterns and baby’s weight; teach medical terminology; and connect families to others with similar experiences.</p>
<p>App can also provide task lists that ease a family’s transition from hospital to home with a newborn. For example, these apps can tell families about to be discharged from a NICU what supplies and special equipment they will need to have at home to support their baby after leaving the hospital. Having access to this information in an app, rather than a paper handout from a doctor, means it can be easily accessed on demand and won’t get lost in the shuffle of family life.</p>
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<iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/310900917" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Children’s Hospital Los Angeles produced the Baby Steps LA app to help patient families.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>One of us (Dr. Lakshmanan) created the app Baby Steps LA to help families and children with special health care needs at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. The app includes information about how social factors like housing, insurance and food security can influence health and offers related resources.</p>
<p>There are also several apps that focus on the importance of peer support groups and how important they can be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097/NMC.0000000000000489">for new mothers</a>. </p>
<p>Cellphones can potentially help new parents, even without specific apps installed. One study found that new mothers who received text messages with tips about breastfeeding and child development while enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children breastfed their children <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.12488">more consistently and for a longer period of time</a>. </p>
<p>Text messaging chatbots like <a href="https://redtri.com/parentspark-interactive-chatbox-teach-you-to-be-better-parent/">ParentSpark</a> use artificial intelligence and user patterns to respond to parents’ queries on topics like feeding and exercise, helping inform their choices and teach new strategies.</p>
<p>Families can even turn to <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18999101">video games to help prepare them</a> for discharge from the hospital or to learn about medical conditions.</p>
<h2>Connecting to live experts via screens</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.healthit.gov/faq/what-telehealth-how-telehealth-different-telemedicine">Telehealth</a> is an important option for families with young children, because it expands access to medical, mental health and developmental care options, especially in areas where there are limited numbers of specialty providers. Parents and their children can videoconference with experts, reducing time spent traveling and in waiting rooms.</p>
<p>The expansion of <a href="https://www.healthrecoverysolutions.com/blog/telehealth-autism-diagnosis">autism services on telehealth platforms</a> is a prime example of how this technology can meet the needs of families with young children. Families can access screening, early diagnosis, applied behavior analysis, speech language pathology, parent training and overall treatment planning from home by logging into a videoconferencing platform and speaking to a live provider.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ExMZtrH1Jm4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Live suggestions via on-screen interactions can help with parenting.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Families can also access parent support and parent training, including developmental assessments, using telehealth. One of us (Dr. Traube) designed a service called <a href="https://pat.usc.edu">Virtual Home Visitation</a> that gives families direct access to a parenting coach who guides them through activities that support their child’s development using videochat technology.</p>
<p>These services can be difficult to find in local communities. But, through weekly screen interactions with a parenting coach, families can promote their child’s development, ensure any developmental delays are quickly identified and find intervention options early.</p>
<h2>Online content aimed at kids</h2>
<p>Plenty of research indicates that <a href="https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/news-features-and-safety-tips/Pages/Children-and-Media-Tips.aspx">young children should not</a> interact with video games or content to the exclusion of books or in the absence of an adult to coach them. </p>
<p>But thoughtfully built educational platforms can be a productive way for parents to use technology to support their child’s early learning. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2014-2251">When designed with child development research in mind</a>, content platforms offering games, e-books, and videos can help kids build motor, socio-emotional and cognitive skills, as well as help to reduce skill gaps in important foundational areas like color, letter and number recognition.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323437/original/file-20200326-133001-1pfny1t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323437/original/file-20200326-133001-1pfny1t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323437/original/file-20200326-133001-1pfny1t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323437/original/file-20200326-133001-1pfny1t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323437/original/file-20200326-133001-1pfny1t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323437/original/file-20200326-133001-1pfny1t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323437/original/file-20200326-133001-1pfny1t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323437/original/file-20200326-133001-1pfny1t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">A crucial component in young children’s screen time is a parent’s close involvement and supervision.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/man-boy-and-young-girl-sitting-on-a-grey-sofa-royalty-free-image/910586842">Mint Images via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>For example, studies suggest that well-designed e-books can <a href="https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED560635.pdf">support early literacy</a>. Thoughtful use of highlighting, or animating relevant parts of picture or text, and interactive features including dictionaries, word readouts or learning games can help with word learning and reading.</p>
<p>When parents assess e-learning platforms, they should <a href="https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/news-features-and-safety-tips/Pages/Children-and-Media-Tips.aspx">evaluate them on the basis</a> of whether they are engaging, actively involve the child, have meaningful content, and demonstrate or encourage social interaction. Organizations including <a href="https://pbskids.org/">Public Broadcasting Service</a> and <a href="https://www.sesamestreet.org/">Sesame Workshop</a> focus on early childhood and have invested a lot of research into developing trustworthy e-platforms.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMp1713180">Over two-thirds of Americans use mobile health applications</a> and the iTunes and Android app stores offer more than 165,000 of them. All of these technologies offer health care providers an opportunity to meet families where they are whenever they need us. Done right, they could lead to sustainable improvements in child health and development.</p>
<p>[<em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=expertise">Expertise in your inbox. Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter and get a digest of academic takes on today’s news, every day.</a></em>]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/122280/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dorian Traube receives funding from the Overdeck Family Foundation, Gary Community Investments, Parsons Foundation, and Queenscare Foundation. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ashwini Lakshmanan receives funding from the Sharon D. Lund foundation and the Zumberge Diversity and Inclusion Award. She previously received funding from the National Institutes of Health, the Packard foundation for Children's Health and the Confidence Foundation.</span></em></p>Mobile health apps, teleconferencing with experts and thoughtfully designed educational platforms can all help families during the chaotic and confusing early years.Dorian Traube, Associate Professor of Social Work, University of Southern CaliforniaAshwini Lakshmanan, Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, University of Southern CaliforniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1260412020-01-13T13:56:43Z2020-01-13T13:56:43ZHow ‘WhatsApp group admin’ became one of the most powerful jobs in politics<p>When the British parliament <a href="https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/political-parties/conservative-party/boris-johnson/news/106431/mps-back-moves-forcing-number">asked the government</a> in 2019 to publish the messages that key officials were sending to each other about Brexit via text message, email, Facebook and messaging apps, it drew attention to the extent to which elected officials have been sidestepping official channels in their communications. </p>
<p>The push came in September, when tensions over Brexit were high and there were concerns that the government was being dishonest about its motives for suspending parliament for five weeks – a move that was ultimately <a href="https://theconversation.com/q-a-supreme-court-rules-boris-johnsons-prorogation-of-uk-parliament-was-unlawful-so-what-happens-now-124119">ruled as unlawful</a> by the Supreme Court. </p>
<p>Clearly parliamentarians thought important information was being shared on these platforms that the public needed to know about. In a rather telling move, the government refused to comply with the request. The incident shows how messaging apps have come to play an important role in operations – and how they allow officials and politicians to evade scrutiny.</p>
<p>Political groups are increasingly alert to the potential of messaging services like WhatsApp and Telegram for operating closed communities. The emergence of the European Research Group (ERG) within the UK Conservative Party is a case in point. This is an organisation for Conservative members of parliament who were enthusiastic about leaving the European Union long before the 2016 referendum and subsequently pushed for as hard a Brexit as possible. </p>
<p>Shortly after the referendum, key ERG leaders <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/12/19/whatsapp-wars-brexiteers-row-number-messages-secret-chat-forum/">came together in a WhatsApp chat group</a>. The then chairman of what was still a <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/brexit-backing-mps-plot-their-attacks-on-whatsapp-sw5gp7680">little-known organisation</a>, Steve Baker, became an administrator of the group.</p>
<p>By the time the existence of the WhatsApp group was revealed four months later, the ERG was becoming more and more influential within the Conservative Party. Some would argue that its actions ultimately helped to thwart Theresa May’s attempts to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/feb/14/theresa-may-defeated-on-brexit-again-as-erg-tories-abstain">get her Brexit deal through parliament</a>. The ERG voted again and again to block her deal, denying her the votes she needed.</p>
<p>This was quite an achievement for an organisation largely made up of backbenchers. At times, it isn’t even entirely clear to the general public which parliamentarians are members of the ERG, yet they were able to exert significant influence over their party without having to go public with their operations. </p>
<p>That was, in no small, part, thanks to networks beyond the reach of traditional scrutiny mechanisms such as the WhatsApp group. The ERG WhatsApp group members <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/12/19/whatsapp-wars-brexiteers-row-number-messages-secret-chat-forum/">described</a> their chat as an “extremely effective” way of organising as it helped them to agree on “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/feb/06/jacob-rees-mogg-and-the-shadowy-group-of-tories-shaping-brexit">lines to take</a>” in parliament and in the media.</p>
<p>Many similar WhatsApp groups now exist in parliament. They unite MPs of different parties that range from Labour factions to the “One Nation” group of moderate Tories. Communicating in a WhatsApp group even allows MPs to organise across party boundaries, helping them to defy the official party line on key issues.</p>
<h2>The all-seeing admin</h2>
<p>This new type of political organising affects how power is distributed within parties and movements. A traditional party has a leader and a whip; a WhatsApp group has an administrator. A new breed of operative therefore wields significant power. </p>
<p>Administrators make decisions regarding who to add or remove from a chat and, often, what content is shared. This means that, if a group gets big enough, a relatively low-level party operative can become an important figure. In the traditional sense of party structures, Steve Baker, for example, is not a leading politician. But as administrator of the ERG WhatsApp group, he can <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/12/19/whatsapp-wars-brexiteers-row-number-messages-secret-chat-forum/">control who is in and who is out</a> of a discussion group that has played a central role in the direction taken on Brexit.</p>
<p>Research in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2015.1043318">recent social movements</a> such as Occupy Wall Street and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1369118X.2016.1161817">the Indignados</a> has shown that social media administrators can become leading voices in protest communities even when such movements are presented as “leaderless” and “horizontal”. However, social movements are not the same as elected representatives. They do not have to conform to the same regulations around transparency and accountability that apply to our elected politicians.</p>
<h2>An encrypted universe</h2>
<p>The content of influential online groups is also often as invisible as the people taking part in them. This is because messaging platforms like WhatsApp are encrypted and designed as extremely private spaces. </p>
<p>There can be benefits to encryption of course. Protest movements depend on this security to protect themselves from the threat posed by undemocratic states. But elected politicians should not abuse the capabilities of digital media like the encryption mechanisms of platforms. Otherwise, society risks losing track of government communications related to important matters such as Brexit. The history can be deleted or hidden away in private company servers. While Downing Street’s confidential memos on the prorogation <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/sep/05/prorogation-parliament-abuse-power-high-court-shocking-brexit">were eventually released</a>, such digital communications remain out of reach. </p>
<p>The other problem here is that government business is increasingly conducted on the communication platforms of private companies. What power does this give Whatsapp, and its parent company Facebook, over the communications of our governments? </p>
<p>We still know relatively little about how messaging platforms are reshaping parties’ internal operations. Unless we turn the spotlight on these internal dynamics, shadow organisations inside parties will continue to influence politics with no accountability.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/126041/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Aliaksandr Herasimenka is affiliated with The German Marshall Fund of the United States. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Anastasia Kavada does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The hand that taps ‘remove from this group’ is the hand that rules the world.Aliaksandr Herasimenka, PhD candidate, Visiting Lecturer, School of Media & Communication, University of WestminsterAnastasia Kavada, Senior Lecturer, School of Media and Communication, University of WestminsterLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1274452019-12-01T18:59:38Z2019-12-01T18:59:38ZEpisode – Choose Your Story: the inappropriate game your kids have probably played<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/304370/original/file-20191129-45264-fci5hw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C15%2C5160%2C3430&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The game's players are able to customise their own storyline, which can then be 'featured' and shared with other players. The catch is, there's more than 12 million creators - and the content isn't exactly well-regulated. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/1107980378?src=7daba6c0-588a-46d1-a778-5e76f307ac2f-2-45&size=huge_jpg">STEFANY LUNA DE LINZY / Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As smartphone ownership surges, we’re seeing a drastic rise in the use of mobile apps, many of which are marketed towards impressionable young audiences. </p>
<p>One such app is <a href="https://www.episodeinteractive.com/">Episode – Choose Your Story</a>, a free game with more than 50 million downloads and five million weekly users. </p>
<p>Episode is coming under scrutiny by parents and users, many as young as 10, for its inappropriate themes. Such apps are far-reaching, and parenting their use can be tricky. </p>
<p>According to a US <a href="https://www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/default/files/uploads/research/2019-census-8-to-18-key-findings-updated.pdf">report published</a> this year, which surveyed 1,677 kids, 41% of tweens (aged 8-12) and 84% of teens (aged 13-18) owned a smartphone. </p>
<p>There’s an increasing number of games targeted at these age groups, of which many follow a “choose your story” format. </p>
<p>The stories are divided into episodes and the user, or “reader”, can interact with storylines and even create their own. Readers can choose from a list of responses to influence things such as a character’s appearance, dialogue and reaction to events.</p>
<p>While most storylines focus on romance and high school relationships, many have raised alarm bells in parents. A number of parents have <a href="https://www.commonsensemedia.org/app-reviews/episode-choose-your-story/user-reviews/adult">voiced concerns</a> on Common Sense Media, a leading source of entertainment recommendations for families. </p>
<h2>What your child engages with online</h2>
<p>Episode features numerous storylines about sexual discrimination, underage sex and pregnancy. Many of these glorify adultery and are potentially promoting reckless decision making, pettiness and unkind acts. </p>
<p>On inspection, there are several issues with the app. </p>
<p>First, storylines can be written by anyone, even those aged 13-17. And while there are more than 12 million creators, there is little content regulation, even when the Episode community expresses concern. </p>
<p>One story regarding <a href="https://forums.episodeinteractive.com/t/problematic-stories/135210/46">sexual consent</a> raised uproar with users, who were concerned at the poor moral message of a young female character being “blind drunk” and not consenting to a sexual liaison with an older male character.</p>
<p>Yet, the story was not removed, and the author did little to address the backlash. </p>
<p>Another concerning aspect of the game is that in many situations, users have to pay money to make morally correct decisions, yet reckless choices are free. This reinforces inappropriate reactions to events. This is also where players can unwittingly spend huge amounts of money.</p>
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<p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-app-trap-how-children-spend-thousands-online-21652">The app trap: how children spend thousands online</a>
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<h2>What about parental guidance ratings?</h2>
<p>On the Common Sense Media website, parents have given Episode a parental advisory rating of 14+, whereas kids have rated it suitable for ages 13+. </p>
<p>On the Apple App Store, the game is rated 12+ and on Google Play it’s rated “Mature”.</p>
<p>That said, <a href="https://blog.apptopia.com/interactive-story-games-tap-into-our-love-for-storytelling">players</a> of Episode are often impressionable older children and teens. A 12+ rating offers little guidance to parents, and ratings overall don’t seem to deter children from playing. </p>
<p>This is hardly surprising. At this stage of development, peer relationships are highly rewarding. Many players are introduced to apps such as Episode by siblings or friends, and are enticed by the excitement they offer. </p>
<p><a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0963721412471347">Research</a> shows several areas of the brain make adolescents more sensitive to the rewards of peer relationships than adults. This motivates teens to focus on their peers in decision-making situations that involve risky behaviour. </p>
<p>This is apparent in one comment from a <a href="https://www.commonsensemedia.org/app-reviews/episode-choose-your-story/user-reviews/child">13-year-old</a> made on a Common Sense Media forum about Episode:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>WOW!!! The best app!!!!! I love it!!!!! P.S. – kids, make sure your parents don’t know you’re using Episode! ;)</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>No universal standard</h2>
<p>Although different countries offer their own <a href="https://www.classification.gov.au/">classifications</a> for online sites and gaming, there’s no universal standard apps have to meet in order to establish suitability for children and teens. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-that-porn-your-child-is-watching-online-how-do-you-know-64120">Is that porn your child is watching online? How do you know?</a>
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<p>Due to the discrepancy in app store ratings, the best prevention of a child or teen using inappropriate apps is to refer to guidance sites such as <a href="https://www.commonsensemedia.org/">Common Sense Media</a>. </p>
<p>But an even better defence is for parents to test questionable apps themselves. From those adults who offer valuable feedback online for childrens’ apps, many are parents who have personally tried the apps.</p>
<p>Until there’s an improved consensus on app classification, parental monitoring remains best practice.</p>
<h2>Other things parents can do</h2>
<p>To prevent the use of unsuitable apps by children and teens, parents can try establishing a verbal and written contract with their child before they are allowed to own a smartphone, or other smart device. </p>
<p>It should contain guidelines for when, how long and what can be viewed on the device. There should also be transparency around what’s being downloaded, with parents checking the device(s) on a regular basis. </p>
<p>Furthermore, due to the tendency of apps such as Episode to encourage consumerism, children and teens should not buy gems, tokens, cards or any app-related digital currency, without first discussing this with an adult.</p>
<p>As it is, the <a href="https://thinkgaming.com/app-sales-data/6028/episode-choose-your-story/">estimated daily revenue</a> of Episode is US$105,000.</p>
<h2>Passive versus interactive</h2>
<p>A major criticism of screen time and app use is that it’s passive and requires little or no involvement from users. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5403814/#B21">Research</a> suggests typing on a keyboard to <a href="http://www.essentialkids.com.au/education/school/primary-school/handwriting-better-for-your-brain-than-typing-research-shows-20190130-h1aofr?btis">calculate times tables</a>, rather than writing by hand or using a smartphone, can hinder long-term learning and memory. </p>
<p>Instead of encouraging device usage, children benefit from more reading, storytelling and imaginative play. As they mature, <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/342/6156/377">such activities enable</a> greater fluency, theory of mind (which is understanding that others may have different beliefs and desires to you), and moral reasoning abilities.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/five-reasons-why-you-should-read-aloud-to-your-kids-and-pick-their-favourite-book-49740">Five reasons why you should read aloud to your kids – and pick their favourite book</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The good news is, app developers have also started to heed such advice, with many promoting the interactive components of their product. </p>
<p>And this isn’t just to appease parents. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.scholastic.com/parents/school-success/learning-toolkit-blog/six-apps-digital-storytelling-kids.html">Apps that encourage storytelling</a>, many led by research and developed by educators, are popular with children and teens too.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/127445/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Janine M. Cooper does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The mobile game has been downloaded more than 50 million times. If you have kids, they’ve probably played it. But it’s more problematic than most people realise.Dr Janine M. Cooper, Founder, Everyday Neuro & Honorary Fellow Manager, Clinical Sciences, Murdoch Children's Research InstituteLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1202482019-07-15T14:22:37Z2019-07-15T14:22:37ZHow tech firms make us feel like we own their apps – and how that benefits them<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/284084/original/file-20190715-173355-16nkn5s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/hand-holding-smartphone-colorful-app-icons-241427182?src=WZ-kbLEXGpdGJ_qXhk-p6g-2-11&studio=1">ESB Professional/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Possessions are going out of fashion. An endless stream of <a href="https://hbr.org/2015/01/the-sharing-economy-isnt-about-sharing-at-all">media reports</a> claim <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/09/the-cheapest-generation/309060/">millennials</a> – that amorphous mass of people born in the 1980s and 1990s who have grown up with the internet and digital technology – are in favour of accessing rather than owning stuff. </p>
<p>And yet <a href="https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2017/HumanBehavior/Presentations/30/">my research</a> shows <a href="https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2018/behavior/Presentations/11/">that</a> owning possessions is still something millennials hunger for. It is just that these <a href="https://theconversation.com/do-we-really-own-our-digital-possessions-115003">possessions are now digital</a> rather than physical.</p>
<p>People who become <a href="https://theconversation.com/digital-addiction-how-technology-keeps-us-hooked-97499">heavy users</a> of the apps they download can develop deep relationships with these services, so deep that they take on what we call “<a href="https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/AMR.2001.4378028">psychological ownership</a>” of them. This means they perceive each app as something that belongs just to them and has effectively become an extension of themselves. After using it frequently and adjusting the settings to their liking, it becomes “my app”, even though their rights to use the service and transfer their data are actually restricted and their accounts can be terminated at any time.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/do-we-really-own-our-digital-possessions-115003">Do we really own our digital possessions?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Psychological ownership can benefit the companies because it leads users to take on valuable extra roles. In the real world, companies have long pushed for shoppers to give feedback, recommend their products and help other shoppers. App “owners” are willingly doing all of this in the digital sphere and often with more expertise and commitment than traditional consumers.</p>
<p>My colleagues and I <a href="https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2018/behavior/Presentations/11/">studied this phenomenon</a> for users of music streaming apps such as Spotify and QQ Music and found that they went the extra mile in four ways. They provided services such as answering the queries of other users on internet forums or offering other information that would enrich the experience of users. They improved the app by giving the company feedback or taking part in the app’s governance. They advocated for the app by championing it in public or defending it against critics. And they financed the service by paying a premium fee or even donating money.</p>
<p>By interviewing more than 200 users of these <a href="https://theconversation.com/music-streaming-has-a-far-worse-carbon-footprint-than-the-heyday-of-records-and-cds-new-findings-114944">music streaming</a> services, we also found that companies use three key experiences to encourage users to become “owners”.</p>
<h2>Control</h2>
<p>We all have a strong desire to exert control and influence on our environment. <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10696679.2015.1002336">Research has shown</a> people gain satisfaction and a boost in self-esteem by <a href="https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/AMR.2001.4378028">changing their surroundings</a>, and we found the same desire among app users to control their digital space.</p>
<p>Users want autonomy to use the app at their own pace and in their own way. They do this by changing the settings to suit their interests and tastes. They can choose what notifications they receive or by which channel. They can skip or hide content. They can decide who they want to share their activity with.</p>
<p>Through this process, they learn how to use the app and see their influence on it, gradually gaining a sense that they can control it and so perceive it to be “their” Spotify or Apple Music.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/284090/original/file-20190715-173376-13xd8vs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/284090/original/file-20190715-173376-13xd8vs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/284090/original/file-20190715-173376-13xd8vs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/284090/original/file-20190715-173376-13xd8vs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/284090/original/file-20190715-173376-13xd8vs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/284090/original/file-20190715-173376-13xd8vs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/284090/original/file-20190715-173376-13xd8vs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Where’s my Spotify?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/side-view-happy-young-african-woman-1372954859?src=2yHLeXVOKQ-Uqv4ywfw7iQ-1-9&studio=1">Bo1982/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Self-identity</h2>
<p>Past generations of young people put posters on their bedroom wall, wore t-shirts with slogans and displayed rows of vinyl or CDs as a show of who they were and what they believed in. Now this demonstration takes place online too. Self-identity is curated in the digital sphere. </p>
<p>Music apps allow users to express themselves by creating a library of likes and sharing the music that appeals to them. They can create their own playlists for any mood or occasion: the homework playlist, the party list or bath-time music.</p>
<p>The more you explore and listen to music, the more the app’s algorithms understand your likes and dislikes. And so the service becomes more tailored to your personality. It becomes “your” service and is trained to look like you. You can even upload your profile pictures and decorate your homepage in your own style.</p>
<p>Apps that allow users to sync their accounts across different devices further reinforce this sense of personalised identity.</p>
<h2>Sense of home</h2>
<p>“To be rooted is perhaps the most important and least recognised need of the human soul,” said French philosopher Simone Weil in her 1952 book <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/aug/18/need-roots-disconnection-past-community">The Need for Roots</a>.</p>
<p>App designers do well when they recognise this need. As well as looking for a digital space to store their creations and memory, users want to build a sense of home, their own place within the app, somewhere familiar and comfortable.</p>
<p>Some mobile apps have tapped into this longing, allowing users to store their memories and history within the app. For instance, a timeline or statistics feature allows users to look back on what they have done on the app and what music they have listened to.</p>
<p>This sense of history can also be made more tangible by creating playlists of a user’s top songs of the year, or reminding them of past events they had on the app, or even with a review of the person’s usage on the app.</p>
<h2>Profitable relationship</h2>
<p>These three experiences mean that users are able to build a relationship with a faceless technology such as a mobile app through psychological ownership.</p>
<p>Once deeply engaged in this kind of relationship with their app, users are then more likely to undertake voluntary contributions for the good of the technology. That can be helpful for the community of other users but ultimately is a major benefit for the company profiting from all that hard work.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/120248/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Melody Zou receives funding from City University of Hong Kong. </span></em></p>App developers deploy three key tricks to make you a more loyal and proactive user.Melody Zou, Assistant Professor of Information Systems and Management, Warwick Business School, University of WarwickLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1045872018-10-14T10:35:21Z2018-10-14T10:35:21ZMarrying technology and home language boosts maths and science learning<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/240236/original/file-20181011-154567-n28194.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Technology has a lot to teach kids, especially if it's available in more than one language.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Rich T Photo/Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Technology, like mobile apps and online learning platforms, is becoming an increasingly important <a href="https://en.unesco.org/news/mobile-technology-key-bringing-education-all-says-broadband-commission">teaching tool</a> all over the world. That’s also true in emerging markets; accessible technologies can essentially be used to take information and digital resources into remote, rural and under-resourced schools.</p>
<p>But is this technology useful if it’s not also provided in diverse languages? In subjects like maths and science, pupils must have a certain level of competency to comprehend and effectively respond to tasks. <a href="https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1023%2FA%3A1011996002062.pdf">Extensive research</a> shows how important language is in helping pupils better understand concepts. </p>
<p>I set out <a href="https://www.ajol.info/index.php/saje/article/viewFile/143683/133397">to evaluate</a> the role of language in mobile maths and science learning platforms like apps and websites. The aim was to enable pupils’ access to mobile learning resources for maths and science subjects. I also wanted to see whether providing this technology in pupils’ home languages would enhance their learning experience. </p>
<p>I found that providing the mobile teaching tools in multiple languages increased pupils’ engagement with their work. My research was done in South Africa where language use in schools remains a contentious issue. </p>
<p>I tracked the use of an app I’d developed that allowed children to switch between languages. My research showed that it helped children grasp maths and science concepts much quicker. This suggests that schools in the country should consider offering mobile learning technology in multiple languages to help pupils learn better in subjects like maths and science. </p>
<h2>Testing an app</h2>
<p>The study was conducted with teachers from urban, rural and peri-urban schools in South Africa’s economic hub, Gauteng, and the neighbouring North West province. More than 90 pupils were involved. The study was conducted over three years, and pupils’ and teachers’ experiences were evaluated several times. </p>
<p>Each school was able to use an adaptive mobile learning app, called Mobile Thuto (that’s the Setswana word for “learning”). The app provides text book resources, practice exercises, quizzes and teachers class notes for mathematics and science subjects for children in grades 10, 11 and 12.</p>
<p>I developed the app in collaboration with teachers and subject heads, allowing them to tailor the content to their teaching plan so they could practice blended learning. This refers to the combination of technology and traditional lessons as part of the teaching and learning process. </p>
<p>One of the app’s key features was the ability to support code-switching – the switch between two languages or more as a form of communication by bilingual or multilingual speakers. Code-switching can be used to enable a better understanding of concepts, especially where pupils have not been able to fully grasp the teaching language. For example, the app allows pupils to switch between English and Setswana content. Setswana and Sepedi were the most common home languages among the pupils we worked with.</p>
<h2>The results</h2>
<p>Once each phase of use of the app was finished, teachers were interviewed and, in <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/jeductechsoci.18.1.308.pdf?casa_token=Ej5DBjK6QTkAAAAA:UTdbTlXVh-Ke3ZE_HJ9mX---9Avt4k_KnDR_Y-1rAOXbmyr-YSVj_dRHGjRawbSRIvCS4pNjVUI-kcVsgtIYnamFLTw06-qIX-3yV6x5uY6ggNEPhFw">a separate study</a>, pupils were also asked about their experiences.</p>
<p>Some of the teachers said they didn’t feel confident using technology in their classrooms. They wanted to be trained to integrate technology into teaching and learning. Many reported that they thought of technology as an additional task rather than as something that could support their current work and resources.</p>
<p>Despite this, the teachers we worked with were enthusiastic about the app and about the idea of working more with technology. They enjoyed helping their pupils to interact with the tasks set out by the app, and wove these tasks into their lessons.</p>
<p>The teachers found it useful that the app was available in more than one language. This helped pupils who struggled with English.</p>
<p>In the second study, pupils said they valued being able to learn on the go through their mobile phones. They enjoyed having mobile phones integrated into classroom teaching and learning. Those in the urban school weren’t overly concerned with having another language option; they spoke English competently and also said English had more social capital than other languages.</p>
<p>Those in the rural and peri-urban schools, meanwhile, found it very helpful to be able to switch between Setswana and English to help them grasp tricky concepts.</p>
<h2>Where to next</h2>
<p>My findings reflect the need for both ongoing support and training for teacher technology education in schools. This will help them – and their pupils – to really benefit from technology in this digital era. It’s also a valuable way to equip pupils with basic computer literacy and the confidence to effectively use online and offline technology resources to learn. </p>
<p>And language must not be ignored as a crucial factor. If technology is to have a positive effect, inclusion is key. By offering pupils educational technology in their own languages, you’re also providing good context and boosting their learning.</p>
<p>Now that the research project is complete, I am developing material for a Massive Open Online Course for teachers. This will guide them through embedding open education technology in their lessons.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/104587/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mmaki Jantjies receives funding from The South African National Research Foundation. </span></em></p>Schools should consider offering mobile learning technology in multiple languages to help pupils learn better in subjects like maths and scienceMmaki Jantjies, Senior Lecturer, University of the Western CapeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1040132018-10-09T19:25:05Z2018-10-09T19:25:05ZMobile apps might make you feel better about travelling alone, but they won’t necessarily make you safer<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/239618/original/file-20181008-72127-1dlad2q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Generally speaking the risks of sexual assault or homicide from an unknown male perpetrator in a public place are low.</span> </figcaption></figure><p>As I was writing this article, I was fortunate enough to be at a conference in Florence, Italy. Like a growing number of <a href="http://roymorgan.com/findings/5667-more-australians-taking-holidays-alone-201407070228">women who travel overseas</a>, whether for work or leisure, many of the trips I’ve done in recent years have been alone. And as a digital criminologist (as well as a mobile app enthusiast), I’m certainly a convert to the practical usefulness of technologies for travel. </p>
<p>There are a wide variety of smartphone apps that certainly make travelling alone <em>easier</em> to navigate. Think offline maps, language translation, transport timetables, online ticket bookings, Uber, electronic banking, virtual private networks (VPNs, especially if using electronic banking on <a href="https://theconversation.com/wi-fi-can-be-krack-ed-heres-what-to-do-next-85746">public Wi-Fi</a>), and updating friends and family about one’s activities. </p>
<p>Then there are the more specific “safety” technologies. Some of them, like the Australian government’s <a href="https://smartraveller.gov.au/Pages/default.aspx?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-fDmwrb03QIVF6mWCh3anw4EEAAYASAAEgKrMfD_BwE">Smart Traveller website</a>, allow voyagers to register their intended whereabouts in case of a natural disaster or emergency. Travellers can also keep up to date with local risk and incident alerts, which can help you to steer clear if there is an incident in the city you’re headed to. </p>
<p>Others, like <a href="https://getbsafe.com/">BSafe</a> and <a href="https://www.abc15.com/news/national/bugle-app-new-app-sends-emergency-alert-when-hiking-jogging">Bugle</a>, allow you to easily notify your emergency contacts if you feel unsafe, or do not arrive at your intended destination.</p>
<p>But while these apps might make you <em>feel</em> safer, it doesn’t necessarily follow that they make you safer in reality.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/239615/original/file-20181008-72113-1izmtgm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/239615/original/file-20181008-72113-1izmtgm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/239615/original/file-20181008-72113-1izmtgm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/239615/original/file-20181008-72113-1izmtgm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/239615/original/file-20181008-72113-1izmtgm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/239615/original/file-20181008-72113-1izmtgm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/239615/original/file-20181008-72113-1izmtgm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/239615/original/file-20181008-72113-1izmtgm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The bSafe app allows your loved ones to pinpoint your location when you activate the SOS button.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://getbsafe.com/">BSafe</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/safe-in-the-city-girls-tell-it-like-it-is-72975">Safe in the City? Girls tell it like it is</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>How risky is solo travel for women?</h2>
<p>In Australia, <a href="https://www.ourwatch.org.au/understanding-violence/facts-and-figures">one in three women has experienced physical violence since the age of 15, and one in five has experienced sexual violence</a>. Much of this violence takes place in private space. And the overwhelming majority of it is committed by men who are known to the woman victim. Often by an intimate partner, date, family member or acquaintance. </p>
<p>The rates and patterns of violence against women are similar in many countries globally. But there are some places where both violence generally, and violence against women, happen more frequently and where travellers might be at additional risk. For example, a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2013/jun/20/women-violence-worldwide-statistics-who">2013 report of the World Health Organisation</a> found that women in Africa were almost twice as likely as women in Europe to experience violence. </p>
<p>Meanwhile the <a href="https://smartraveller.gov.au/countries/pages/list.aspx">Australian government recommends avoiding any travel</a> to some countries and regions within Africa, South America and the Middle East. <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02508281.2018.1494872">India also features in research</a> into countries which may be comparatively less safe for women travelling alone.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/239608/original/file-20181008-72117-1nsc680.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/239608/original/file-20181008-72117-1nsc680.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/239608/original/file-20181008-72117-1nsc680.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/239608/original/file-20181008-72117-1nsc680.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/239608/original/file-20181008-72117-1nsc680.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/239608/original/file-20181008-72117-1nsc680.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/239608/original/file-20181008-72117-1nsc680.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/239608/original/file-20181008-72117-1nsc680.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The author travelling in Tuscany, Italy last week.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But for many of the <a href="http://www.traveller.com.au/most-popular-countries-for-australians-to-visit-2017-abs-tourism-figures-h0wfjg">most common destinations of Australians</a> travelling overseas, the rates and patterns of violence against women are similar to those at home. Some countries, such as Japan, have notoriously low rates of sexual violence. Although there are also well documented concerns over sexual harassment on the subway, and some claims of substantial <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2018/jun/28/japans-secret-shame-review-breaking-a-nations-taboo-about">under-reporting of sex crimes due to social taboos</a>. </p>
<p>Yet the point remains that statistically speaking, unless you’re travelling to a high conflict zone or your travel is to <a href="http://www.un.org/en/women/endviolence/orangedayjune2017.shtml">seek refuge in another country</a>, then as a woman it is not necessarily “riskier” for you to travel solo abroad. </p>
<p>This doesn’t mean that there is no risk, but generally speaking the risks of sexual assault or homicide from an unknown male perpetrator in a public place are low. Many women do experience street harassment, intimidation and fear from men in public, but this happens in Australia as well as abroad.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-the-hands-off-campaign-targeting-sexual-harassment-on-public-transport-misses-the-mark-86213">Why the ‘Hands Off’ campaign targeting sexual harassment on public transport misses the mark</a>
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<h2>‘Security theatre’</h2>
<p>Women are experienced at different types of “safety work”. Many women take additional precautions to manage both their risk of violence, and their feelings of fear or safety, on a daily basis. From avoiding eye contact with unknown men in the street, to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/brain-flapping/2016/aug/30/how-to-actually-talk-to-a-woman-wearing-headphones">wearing headphones</a> even without music playing, to sitting in the back seat of a taxi, to texting a friend when we are home safe. </p>
<p>While travelling solo, this safety work might also include: providing family or friends with our itinerary before we depart, regularly checking in our location on our social media, sending location updates or any changed plans back to family or friends back home, and following along on our navigation while taking a taxi. </p>
<p>Of course, some of these activities – which are certainly practical – can also be understood as managing fear, rather than necessarily keeping us safer. Some of them are directed only at raising the alarm should we go missing – that is presumably, after some harm has already befallen us. </p>
<p>We engage in a kind of “<a href="https://www.schneier.com/essays/archives/2009/11/beyond_security_thea.html">security theatre</a>” – a term famously used to refer to some counter terrorism measures that actually do little to reduce the risk of a terrorist attack, but make the public less afraid. For women, our security theatre includes practices that make us feel safer and more empowered to enter into public spaces. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/have-you-ever-wondered-how-much-energy-you-put-in-to-avoid-being-assaulted-it-may-shock-you-65372">Have you ever wondered how much energy you put in to avoid being assaulted? It may shock you</a>
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<h2>The right amount of panic</h2>
<p>As legal scholar Fiona Vera-Gray rightly <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=XgBpDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR1&dq=women+%22safety+work%22&ots=Gb4QkUiltP&sig=2uLNIMOdo736_aLi5fO793QeBMA#v=onepage&q=women%20%22safety%20work%22&f=false">points out</a>, it seems impossible to know what “the right amount of panic” is. Women are regularly blamed if they fall victim to men’s violence for not being panicked enough – in other words, for taking too much risk. But if we are too panicked it will restrict our movements and participation in the world in ways that seriously undermine our freedoms. </p>
<p>To travel solo while female seems to require walking a tightrope of challenging gender stereotypes of women as inherently in danger and in need of protection, while also navigating a cascade of advice on how to keep safe. </p>
<p>Ultimately, of course, no mobile app is going to prevent a violent crime by a perpetrator who chooses to enact it. But if the convenience of an all-in-one navigating, translating and incident reporting device both makes solo travel easier – and makes you feel more safe and confident – then go on, get out there!</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/104013/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Anastasia Powell receives funding from the Australian Research Council, and the Criminology Research Council. Anastasia is also a member of the board of directors of Our Watch, Australia's national organisation for the prevention of violence against women. </span></em></p>The additional precautions many women take when travelling alone help us manage our fears and feel more empowered to enter into public spaces.Anastasia Powell, Associate Professor and ARC DECRA Fellow, Criminology and Justice Studies, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/994562018-07-23T20:06:24Z2018-07-23T20:06:24Z‘Use this app twice daily’: how digital tools are revolutionising patient care<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/228141/original/file-20180718-142417-mehnhy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">New electronic devices are being used by people of all ages to track activity, measure sleep and record nutrition.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Imagine you’ve recently had a heart attack. </p>
<p>You’re a lucky survivor. You’ve received high-quality care from nurses and doctors whilst in hospital and you’re now preparing to go home with the support of your family. </p>
<p>The doctors have made it clear that the situation is grim. It’s a case of: change your lifestyle or die. You’ve got to stop smoking, increase your physical activity, eat a healthy balanced diet (whilst reducing your salt), and make sure you take all your medicine as prescribed. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/evidence-based-medicine-is-broken-why-we-need-data-and-technology-to-fix-it-29625">Evidence-based medicine is broken: why we need data and technology to fix it</a>
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<p>But before you leave the hospital, the cardiology nurse wants to talk to you. There are a few apps you can download on your smartphone that will help you manage your recovery, including the transition from hospital to home and all the health-related behavioural changes necessary to reduce the risk of another heart attack. </p>
<p>Rapid advancements in digital technologies are revolutionising healthcare. The benefits are numerous, but the rate of development is difficult to keep up with. And that’s creating challenges for both healthcare professionals and patients. </p>
<h2>What are digital therapeutics?</h2>
<p>Digital therapeutics can be defined as any intervention that is digitally delivered and has a therapeutic effect on a patient. They can be used to treat medical conditions in a similar way to drugs or surgery. </p>
<p>Current examples of digital therapeutics include apps for managing <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5161780/">medications</a> and <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/2047487317750913">cardiovascular health</a>, apps to support <a href="https://www.jad-journal.com/article/S0165-0327(17)30015-0/fulltext">mental health</a> and well being, or <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10376178.2015.1130360?journalCode=rcnj20">augmented and virtual reality</a> tools for patient education.</p>
<p>Paper-based letters, health records, prescription charts and education pamphlets are outdated. We can now send emails, enter information into electronic databases and access electronic medication charts.</p>
<p>And patient education is no longer a static, one-way communication. The digital revolution facilitates dynamic and personalised education, and a two-way interaction between patient and therapist. </p>
<h2>How do digital therapeutics help?</h2>
<p>Digital health care <a href="https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Report-The-Impact-of-Digital-Health-on-Safety-and-Quality-of-Healthcar....pdf">improves overall quality of care</a>, even in cases where a patient lives hundreds of kilometres away from their doctor. </p>
<p>Take <a href="https://www.diabetesaustralia.com.au/diabetes-in-australia">diabetes </a> for example. This condition affects 1.7 million Australians. It’s a major risk factor for developing cardiovascular disease and stroke. So it’s important that people with diabetes <a href="https://www.diabetesaustralia.com.au/">manage their condition</a> to reduce their risk. </p>
<p>A recent <a href="http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/40/9/1218.long">study</a> evaluated a team-based online game, which was delivered by an app to provide diabetes self-management education. The participants who received the app in this trial had meaningful and sustained improvements in their diabetes, as measured by their <a href="https://www.diabetesaustralia.com.au/blood-glucose-monitoring">HbA1c</a> (blood glucose levels). </p>
<p>App based games of this kind hold promise to improve chronic disease outcomes at scale. </p>
<p>New <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5492436/">electronic devices</a> are also being used by people of all ages to track activity, measure sleep and record nutrition. This information provides instant and accurate feedback to individuals and their therapists, allowing for adjustments where necessary. The logged information can also be combined into large data sets to reveal patterns over time and inform future treatments.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-virtual-reality-spiders-are-helping-people-face-their-arachnophobia-73769">How virtual reality spiders are helping people face their arachnophobia</a>
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<p>Digital therapeutics are spawning a new language within the healthcare industry. “Connected health” reflects the increasingly digital ways clinicians and patients communicate. A few examples include <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2442937">text messaging</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28887294">telehealth</a>, and <a href="http://www.jmir.org/2018/4/e150/">video consultations</a> with health professionals. </p>
<p>There is increasing evidence that digitally delivered care (including <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jocn.13834">apps</a> and text message based interventions) can be good for your health and can help you manage chronic conditions, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. </p>
<h2>But not all health apps are the same</h2>
<p>Whilst the digital health revolution is exciting, results of research studies should be carefully interpreted by patients and providers. </p>
<p>Innovation has led to 325,000 <a href="https://research2guidance.com/325000-mobile-health-apps-available-in-2017/">mobile health apps available in 2017</a>. This raises significant governance issues relating to patient safety (including data protection) when using digital therapeutics. </p>
<p>A recent <a href="http://www.nature.com/articles/s41746-018-0021-9">review</a> identified that most studies have a relatively short duration of intervention and only reflect short-term follow up with participants. The long-term effect of these new therapeutic interventions remains largely unknown. </p>
<p>The current speed of technological development means the usual safety mechanisms face new ethical and regulatory challenges. Who is doing the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10376178.2018.1486943">prescribing</a>? Who is responsible for the efficacy, storage and accuracy of data? How are these technologies being integrated into existing care systems?</p>
<h2>Digital health needs a collaborative approach</h2>
<p>Digital health presents seismic disruption to patient care, particularly when new technologies are cheap and readily accessible to patients who might lack the insight required to recognise normality or cause for alarm. Technology can be enabling and empowering for self management, however there’s a lot more needs to be done to link these new technologies into the current health system. </p>
<p>Take the new Apple Watch functionality of <a href="https://support.apple.com/en-au/ht204666">heart rate notifications</a> for example. Research like the <a href="https://www.apple.com/watch/apple-heart-study/">Apple Heart Study</a> suggests this exciting innovation could lead to significantly improved detection rates of heart rhythm disorders, and enhanced stroke prevention efforts. </p>
<p>But when a patient receives a high heart rate notification, what should they do? Ignore it? Go to a GP? Head straight to the emergency department? And, what is the flow on impact on the health system?</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-virtual-reality-wont-replace-cadavers-in-medical-school-67448">Why virtual reality won't replace cadavers in medical school</a>
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<p>Many of these questions remain unanswered suggesting there is an urgent need for research that examines how technology is implemented into existing healthcare systems. </p>
<p>If we are to produce useful digital therapeutics for real-world problems, then it is critical that the end-users are engaged in the process. Patients and healthcare professionals will need to work with software developers to design applications that meet the complex healthcare needs of patients.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/99456/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Caleb Ferguson has received funding from the Stroke Foundation, Australian College of Nursing, University of Technology, Western Sydney University and teaching honoraria from Pfizer. He is affiliated with Western Sydney University, Western Sydney Local Health District, University of Technology Sydney, Translational Health Research Institute (THRI) and Ingham Institute. He is Managing Editor of Contemporary Nurse and Associate Editor of BMC Cardiovascular Disorders. He is an executive member of the Cardiovascular Nursing Council of the Cardiac Society of Australia & New Zealand, a Board Director of the Australasian Cardiovascular Nursing College, Research Advisory Committee Member and Ambassador of the Stroke Foundation, and a member of both the 2017 Stroke Foundation Acute Stroke Management Clinical Guidelines and 2018 Heart Foundation & CSANZ - Atrial Fibrillation Guidelines working groups. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Debra Jackson and Louise D. Hickman do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>There were 325,000 mobile health apps available in 2017. But while the digital health revolution is exciting, its rate of development is posing challenges for patients and healthcare professionals.Caleb Ferguson, Senior Research Fellow, Western Sydney UniversityDebra Jackson, Professor, University of Technology SydneyLouise D. Hickman, Associate Professor of Nursing, University of Technology SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/958462018-05-24T10:23:41Z2018-05-24T10:23:41ZHow ‘media snacks’ – from HQ Trivia to Candy Crush – are transforming the workplace<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/219993/original/file-20180522-51121-5kz1wl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A quick distraction is at our fingertips – and app developers know it. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/employee-using-his-smartphone-workplace-while-364632065?src=A48-4ZfObeWYcNiYXIYZow-1-0">JrCasas/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>When Snow White sang “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSnXNHUEodY">Whistle While You Work</a>,” she was participating in a long tradition of using entertainment to manage the stresses of labor.</p>
<p>That same year, factory owners in the United Kingdom became interested in exploring whether music <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14649360500258229?src=recsys&">could improve productivity</a> and invested in research to determine the optimal tunes for doing so. Workers welcomed the change, viewing it as a reprieve from the mind-numbing monotony of the mechanical age.</p>
<p>Today, smartphones and the internet largely perform this role, giving workers an array of daily distractions. </p>
<p>Media companies have taken note and are increasingly investing in the development of what <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=EoX5iqwAAAAJ&hl=en">I call</a> a “<a href="https://nyupress.org/books/9781479844234/">procrastination economy</a>,” which is centered on the development of products designed for those moments when we pull out our phones or surf the web for a few minutes of distraction.</p>
<p>It could be during your commute or while you’re hanging out in a waiting room. But the workplace is an especially fertile place for media designed to avert people’s attention from the task at hand. </p>
<p>However, that doesn’t necessarily mean we are compulsively checking our phones to the detriment of our ability to do our job well. As alluring as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candy_Crush_Saga">Candy Crush</a> may be, it doesn’t compare to a steady pay check. No, instead, these new products can enhance camaraderie and add to the various ways workers have, for years, navigated the work day.</p>
<h2>Disengaging from the task at hand</h2>
<p>Whether it’s listening to the radio in the break room or sneaking a book into the bathroom, media have long played a role in the workday. </p>
<p>The digital age transformed labor; the assembly line gave way to the cubicle; and work required constant engagement with the computer. These same computers also brought with them a form of distraction: the internet. During the workday, employees could now easily access their favorite news sites or chat with their friends.</p>
<p>A particularly ingenuous development of the era is the “<a href="http://www.speedofcreativity.org/2007/04/02/the-boss-button/">boss button</a>,” a computer hack for transforming a chat window or video game into an anonymous spreadsheet. Employers combated this trend by <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/22/business/on-the-office-pc-bosses-opt-for-all-work-and-no-play.html">installing nanny software</a> to prohibit surfing on certain websites. </p>
<p>With an assist from the tech industry, employees found a new outlet with their smartphones. A good example of how mobile companies positioned themselves as an ally of the worker is a <a href="http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2fzxg0">2009 commercial</a> for the now-defunct Windows Phone that features a bored employee inviting anthropomorphic mobile apps into a meeting.</p>
<p>Now workers have distractions like the live mobile game show <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/05/arts/hq-trivia-app-appointment-viewing.html">HQ Trivia</a> at their disposal. This daily trivia contest attracts around a million players each weekday afternoon at 3 p.m. EST. The game takes about 15 minutes, as participants answer 12 questions for a chance to win cash prizes. </p>
<p>This game show app is a perfect example of the procrastination economy: It asks participants to plan their day around a short, scheduled distraction, with advertisers paying to sponsor it.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/219991/original/file-20180522-51098-z6ulrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/219991/original/file-20180522-51098-z6ulrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219991/original/file-20180522-51098-z6ulrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219991/original/file-20180522-51098-z6ulrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219991/original/file-20180522-51098-z6ulrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219991/original/file-20180522-51098-z6ulrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/219991/original/file-20180522-51098-z6ulrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">At 3 p.m. every day, millions of workers can take a trivia break.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://qz.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/hq-trivia-android-quiz-app-ios.jpg?quality=80&strip=all&w=1600">HQ</a></span>
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<h2>‘Snacking’ on morsels of media</h2>
<p>An implicit assumption of these developments is that they kill productivity. But research on computer use at work <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08959285.2013.765878">has shown</a> that short web surfing breaks during the day have restorative benefits that improve productivity, offer stress relief, or <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jcc4.12085">fill downtime between projects</a>. Socializing online can also be <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/3055231/the-internet-isnt-whats-distracting-us-the-most-at-work">less time-consuming</a> than chatting with a colleague. </p>
<p>Then there are those who say that the older forms of procrastination – hanging in the break room, chatting at the water cooler – were better because they built camaraderie. Critics of smartphones <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/22/opinion/sunday/the-flight-from-conversation.html">often point</a> to the ways that they isolate us from each other, drawing us into our own bubbles.</p>
<p>But it turns out that these newer products of the procrastination economy can help build camaraderie. Since a lot of digital media is available on demand, colleagues can watch clips and short episodes together that, in the past, they would have only been able to watch at home. In my ethnographic observations of modern workplaces, I’ve found that people often synchronize their break times with coworkers. Then they’ll use their tablets or smartphones to select a show that they all enjoy and can watch together during a break. </p>
<p>Even HQ trivia can bring people together. Its hosts often promote the game as a group activity, since the questions tend to be challenging enough that it’s exceedingly difficult for one person to answer them all correctly. <a href="https://twitter.com/ap_garrett/status/986320588259123201">Teachers have paused class</a> to play as a group, and <a href="https://twitter.com/DanAmira/status/984516119569616898">some workplaces</a> have made the game show a team-building exercise.</p>
<p>HQ is just one selection on the menu of what some have dubbed “<a href="https://www.wired.com/2007/03/snackminifesto/">media snacks</a>.” It includes games like Words with Friends that can be played in short bursts. It could also be subscription services like Netflix <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/22/arts/television/netflix-15-minute-comedy-specials.html">that are offering ever shorter</a> stand-up comedy specials to fit neatly into the rhythms of the day or late night talk shows that <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/late-nights-youtube-battlefront-whos-881254">divide up segments</a> into bite-size morsels for people to quickly consume on YouTube. </p>
<p>The procrastination economy has turned simple mobile games <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/mobile-games-more-money-than-console-pc-chart-2017-6">into lucrative products</a>. It can make a subscription service a vital source of content both at home and at the workplace. </p>
<p>And the best part? Smartphone screens are so small that a boss button isn’t even necessary.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/95846/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ethan Tussey does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Thanks to a burgeoning procrastination economy, developers are creating content that can be consumed in short spurts. What does it mean for productivity?Ethan Tussey, Associate Professor in the School of Film, Media & Theatre, Georgia State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/923412018-03-02T02:52:54Z2018-03-02T02:52:54ZMobile World Congress 2018: 3D selfies, super slo mo video and 4G for the moon<p>The biggest mobile showcase of the year – the Mobile World Congress (<a href="https://www.mobileworldcongress.com">MWC</a>) – wrapped up in Barcelona yesterday, where some 2,300 exhibitors revealed their latest products and technologies.</p>
<p>Hardware manufacturers, such as Samsung and Google, showcased new smartphones, apps and features. While the conference arm of MWC brought experts together to discuss how enterprise solutions in networking, messaging, Internet-of-things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI) could be applied to industries like agriculture, manufacturing and health. </p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/heres-what-australias-cellular-network-scene-could-look-like-by-2020-76215">Here's what Australia's cellular network scene could look like by 2020</a>
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<h2>So what were the big announcements?</h2>
<h3>Nokia goes retro – and takes 4G to the Moon</h3>
<p>Nokia is focusing on building the cheapest and simplest phones for users who do not need the dozens of features offered by the flagship smartphones. The company announced five new phones, including the new Nokia 1 – which runs on Android Go and <a href="https://www.digitaltrends.com/cell-phone-reviews/nokia-1-review/">retails for US$85</a>. </p>
<p>But one of Nokia’s most talked about products at MWC was its retro offering. The company is re-releasing a banana-yellow version of the 8110 featured in the original Matrix film. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/BfoYSp9jPgv","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<p>Nokia also announced that it’s partnering with Vodafone to develop a space-grade 4G network <a href="https://www.nokia.com/en_int/news/releases/2018/02/27/nokia-is-selected-by-vodafone-to-be-its-technology-partner-for-mission-to-the-moon-project">weighing less than a bag of sugar</a>. The endeavour is part of what is anticipated to be the first privately-funded Moon landing. </p>
<p>It involves using 4G technology to connect two Audi lunar quattro rovers – delivered to the Moon via SpaceX – to a base station. <a href="https://www.nokia.com/en_int/news/releases/2018/02/27/nokia-is-selected-by-vodafone-to-be-its-technology-partner-for-mission-to-the-moon-project">Nokia says</a> the technology will enable “the first live-streaming of HD video from the Moon’s surface to a global audience”.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/208404/original/file-20180301-36696-12rbnr1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/208404/original/file-20180301-36696-12rbnr1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=383&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/208404/original/file-20180301-36696-12rbnr1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=383&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/208404/original/file-20180301-36696-12rbnr1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=383&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/208404/original/file-20180301-36696-12rbnr1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/208404/original/file-20180301-36696-12rbnr1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/208404/original/file-20180301-36696-12rbnr1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Nokia has partnered with Vodafone to create the first 4G network on the Moon, connecting two Audi lunar quattro rovers to a base station.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.audi-mediacenter.com/en/press-releases/audi-to-mark-apollo-lunar-missions-with-a-special-commercial-9690">Audi</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h3>Sony catches up, and gives us 3D selfies</h3>
<p>Sony launched its new Xperia XZ2, which offers the best design of any of the phones that Sony has introduced in years. The XZ2’s camera offers 4K video recording, but its missing headphone jack has <a href="http://www.news.com.au/technology/gadgets/mobile-phones/punters-upset-at-sony-removing-headphone-jack-for-new-xperia-xz2-smartphone/news-story/bbf92ce4f32093dc471c224cdea2eb35">sparked outrage</a> among fans. </p>
<p>One cool feature is the addition of Sony’s 3D scanning capability to the <a href="http://www.zdnet.com/article/mwc-2018-sony-mobile-unveils-xperia-xz2/">XZ2’s front-facing camera</a> so users can create 3D selfies. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"968447784415350784"}"></div></p>
<h3>Samsung makes incremental, yet interesting, enhancements</h3>
<p>Samsung unveiled its new Galaxy S9 and S9+ – more or less a rebrand of the S8 with some enhancements on the camera. That includes dual optical image stabilisation for creating quality images in low light, and double the frame rate of the S8’s super slow motion video function.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The Galaxy S9’s super slow motion feature.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/your-mobile-phone-can-give-away-your-location-even-if-you-tell-it-not-to-65443">Your mobile phone can give away your location, even if you tell it not to</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The Galaxy S9 and Galaxy 9+ use <a href="https://exchange.telstra.com.au/mwc18-samsung-galaxy-s9-us-excited">a new modem</a> that allows users to download at speed of up to 1.2 gigabits per second, providing an enhanced surfing and streaming experience. The fingerprint sensor on the S9+ is now underneath the camera for a better user experience, and the new speakers in S9+ are louder than the S8+. </p>
<p>Samsung is also pushing its new artificial intelligence-powered virtual assistant Bixby 2.0, and has introduced a new feature that creates an animated emoji of your face.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"967929089280618497"}"></div></p>
<h2>5G is (still) coming</h2>
<p>Ericsson, Huawei, ZTE, Telstra and many others players are on the run to make 5G a reality. 5G is the next generation in wireless mobile data connectivity. It will run on higher frequency signals than 4G, providing higher capacity and lower latency (the time is takes to complete a function) compared to 4G. Users are likely to see a boost for video streaming and multi-player video games.</p>
<p>More importantly, the technology is required as the backbone for a massive explosion in the IoT industry, which is anticipated to number around <a href="https://www.gartner.com/imagesrv/books/iot/iotEbook_digital.pdf">20 billion devices by 2020</a>. That includes smart home appliances, driverless cars and a wide variety of consumer equipment.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-is-5g-38489">Explainer: what is 5G?</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The first specification of the 5G standard was <a href="https://www.fiercewireless.com/wireless/3gpp-declares-first-5g-nr-spec-complete">announced</a> late last year by 3GPP — the organisation that governs cellular standards. Since then, vendors have started shipping 5G compliant network equipment. Technology research company Gartner expects it will take more time before we start to see commercial 5G networks. According to its <a href="https://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/3780466">recent report</a>, only 3% of the world’s service providers will launch 5G commercially by 2020.</p>
<p>At MWC, <a href="http://www.zdnet.com/article/mwc-2018-telstras-5g-rollout-plan-for-2019">Telstra announced its plan</a> to roll out 5G in collaboration with Ericsson and Intel in Australia’s major cities in 2019. The plan includes deploying, this year, more than 1,000 small cells in metro areas to increase capacity, and 4G and 5G integration trials. Earlier this year, Telstra <a href="http://www.zdnet.com/article/telstra-launches-5g-innovation-centre/">announced</a> its 5G Innovation Centre on the Gold Coast, where the telco will trial different usage cases for smart cities and smart homes. </p>
<h2>Innovations on the horizon: IoT and AI</h2>
<p>At MWC this year, we didn’t see really surprising breakthroughs on the hardware side, and companies seemed to be more focused on the end user and enterprise applications. </p>
<p>Looking ahead, all the big companies are working on new sensors and wearable technologies, especially in the health domain. Both <a href="https://www.wareable.com/apple/apple-watch-blood-pressure-4829">Apple</a> and <a href="https://www.gsmarena.com/the_samsung_galaxy_s9_and_s9_can_measure_your_blood_pressure-news-29869.php">Samsung</a> have made it a priority to develop consumer-grade sensors that can measure blood pressure. There’s also likely to be a continued focus on improving user experience in AI-powered applications, such as <a href="https://www.pocket-lint.com/phones/news/samsung/140128-what-is-bixby-samsungs-assistant-explained-and-how-to-use-it">virtual assistants</a> and <a href="https://www.engadget.com/2017/10/29/neural-network-fixes-phone-photo-quality/">camera apps</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/92341/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mohamed Abdelrazek does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The biggest mobile technology showcase of the year wrapped up in Barcelona yesterday. We took a look at some of the highlights.Mohamed Abdelrazek, Associate professor, IoT and Software Engineering, Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/886842017-12-20T11:27:32Z2017-12-20T11:27:32ZMore businesses are trying mobile apps to lure and keep consumers<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198611/original/file-20171211-27680-oj23he.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Using a store's mobile app can affect in-store purchases.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/young-beautiful-woman-using-mobile-store-498919009">Javier Arres/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Intense retail competition has led old standbys, such as <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/24/here-are-the-28-stores-that-sears-is-closing-next.html">Sears</a>, to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/list-sears-kmart-store-closures-2017-11">close dozens of stores</a>. Walmart is <a href="https://news.walmart.com/2016/08/08/walmart-agrees-to-acquire-jetcom-one-of-the-fastest-growing-e-commerce-companies-in-the-us">venturing online more</a>. And Amazon is expanding offline, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-big-expansion-retail-pop-up-stores-2016-9">opening stores</a> and <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-16/amazon-to-acquire-whole-foods-in-13-7-billion-bet-on-groceries">buying Whole Foods</a>. The fight for retail dollars is fierce, and the battleground will soon migrate into the palms of customers’ hands – via apps on their smartphones.</p>
<p>This isn’t just happening with mega-retailers. <a href="https://www.cinemark.com/cinemode">Movie</a> <a href="https://www.amctheatres.com/mobile/app">chains</a> and <a href="https://www.chewy.com/ci/lp/resp/chewy-app/chewy-app.html">pet supply stores</a> are increasingly connecting with their customers through their own branded apps. Zumiez, a specialty clothing chain with <a href="http://ir.zumiez.com/news-releases/news-release-details/zumiez-inc-announces-fiscal-2017-third-quarter-results">600 stores in the U.S.</a>, <a href="http://www.zumiez.com/the-stash/">has an app</a>. Scooter’s Coffee, an Omaha-based coffee chain with <a href="https://franchising.scooterscoffee.com/">200 stores</a>, <a href="https://www.scooterscoffee.com/MobileApp">has one too</a>. So does <a href="https://www.nypovt.com/">New York Pizza Oven</a>, a single pizza parlor in Vermont. </p>
<p>Mobile apps are becoming key ways for customers and retailers to interact. Our recent analysis of data from a large U.S. retailer of video games and electronics (whose name we agreed to keep confidential) found that <a href="http://www.msi.org/reports/the-effects-of-mobile-apps-on-shopper-purchases-and-product-returns/">apps can even affect consumers’ offline buying</a> habits.</p>
<h2>Growth in use – and spending</h2>
<p>The number of people who have the option to use mobile apps is skyrocketing. <a href="https://www.ericsson.com/en/press-releases/2015/6/ericsson-mobility-report-70-percent-of-worlds-population-using-smartphones-by-2020">More than 70 percent</a> of the world population will own a smartphone by 2020. And they’ll spend more than <a href="https://www.emarketer.com/Article/Smartphone-Apps-Crushing-Mobile-Web-Time/1014498">80 percent of their on-phone time</a> using task-specific apps.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/199060/original/file-20171213-27580-1w8e9rs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/199060/original/file-20171213-27580-1w8e9rs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/199060/original/file-20171213-27580-1w8e9rs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/199060/original/file-20171213-27580-1w8e9rs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/199060/original/file-20171213-27580-1w8e9rs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/199060/original/file-20171213-27580-1w8e9rs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/199060/original/file-20171213-27580-1w8e9rs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/199060/original/file-20171213-27580-1w8e9rs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Is there no line because people are ordering ahead on their mobile phones?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/phoenix-april-19-starbucks-store-kiosk-675584989">jessicakirsh/Shutterstock.com</a></span>
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<p>Letting buyers learn about products, discover deals, locate nearby stores and even place orders in advance is a huge business opportunity. At Starbucks, for example, an app allowing people to order and pay on the go – just swinging into the store for pickup – helped customers avoid standing in line and waiting: <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2015/10/30/how-mobile-ordering-can-impact-starbucks-valuation/">Over five years, 20 percent of its sales</a> shifted to online transactions.</p>
<p>Research has also begun to show that people who use mobile shopping apps buy more than they might otherwise. After individual shoppers started purchasing using eBay’s mobile app, their <a href="https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.104.5.489">purchases from eBay’s website increased</a>. Similarly, a tablet app from major Chinese e-tailer Alibaba led customers to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2015.2406">spend about US$923.5 million more each year</a> with the company than they would have without the app. Some of that increased spending is from shoppers using the app to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2015.2406">buy impulsively</a> – making one-off purchases of items they are interested in, or adding items to larger orders.</p>
<p>Our research recently found a new dimension to this app-related spending boost. Over 18 months, customers who downloaded the branded app of the retailer we studied spent <a href="http://www.msi.org/reports/the-effects-of-mobile-apps-on-shopper-purchases-and-product-returns/">30 percent more in stores</a> than they would have without the app. We can infer this by looking at data on customers’ spending before and after the app was installed, and by <a href="https://press.princeton.edu/titles/8769.html">comparing that</a> to the spending of a random sample of customers who had similar demographics and shopping behavior before the app launched.</p>
<p>We learned that most of the increase was because customers used the app to find out about products before buying them. For example, by closely analyzing the data on app use and purchases, we could see these customers started increasing purchases of lesser known video games when they started using the app.</p>
<h2>App users return products more</h2>
<p>While shoppers who use a retailer’s mobile app tend to buy more online and in stores, we find that they are also <a href="http://www.msi.org/reports/the-effects-of-mobile-apps-on-shopper-purchases-and-product-returns/">more prone to subsequently returning</a> the products they purchased. </p>
<p>In particular, customers who use a retailer’s app tend to return products most often when they purchased those products on discount, and within seven days of making the original purchase. Apps often make it easier to purchase items on impulse. When customers receive some of the items and are dissatisfied, they regret the decisions and return the items. </p>
<p>Even taking into account the high rate of returns, app users spend more both online and in physical stores. But that’s when the apps work as customers expect them to.</p>
<h2>App failures –- and consequences</h2>
<p>Apps that load information slowly or crash frequently can deter not only online purchasing, but in-person spending, too. Surveys show that <a href="https://techbeacon.com/sites/default/files/gated_asset/mobile-app-user-survey-failing-meet-user-expectations.pdf">more than 60 percent</a> of users expect an app to load within four seconds. And our ongoing research suggests that more than half of users will abandon an app that freezes or crashes frequently.</p>
<p>App slowdowns can be costly. One estimate suggests that if each Amazon webpage took just one second longer to load, the company’s sales could drop <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/1825005/how-one-second-could-cost-amazon-16-billion-sales">as much as $1.6 billion</a> a year. For smaller retailers, a similar drop of 2 to 3 percent would be a smaller dollar amount but still a significant blow.</p>
<p>Our ongoing research with Stanford’s <a href="https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/faculty-research/faculty/sridhar-narayanan">Sridhar Narayanan</a> suggests that poor app performance reduces users’ in-store spending too. Specifically, we studied how shoppers react when an app is not accessible for five or six hours, due (users were told) to a server error. Our preliminary results suggest that in the following two weeks, those shoppers spent 3 to 4 percent less in stores than they would have otherwise. Less-frequent customers reduced their spending even more than the company’s more regular shoppers.</p>
<figure>
<iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/221094371" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Unnati Narang discusses her ongoing research on failures in mobile shopping apps.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Interestingly, customers who experience app failures spend less in stores, but their online spending remains unchanged. A deeper analysis indicates that when a retailer’s app fails, shoppers often go to the retailer’s website to complete their intended transactions. But the negative experience from app failure discourages them from buying more in the retailer’s store. </p>
<p>Our research illustrates some ways mobile apps can be a double-edged sword for customers and retailers alike. Shoppers can use apps to learn more about prospective purchases, be inspired on the fly and save time at the cash register. But if the software fails, they may be frustrated, discouraged and even spend less at physical stores. Retailers can see increased sales and faster transactions, but may have to handle more returns – though they’ll still make more money. The longer-term effects of mobile apps on the retail business have yet to be seen, of course, but in an ever-changing landscape, companies and customers alike will be exploring the options.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/88684/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>As businesses’ branded mobile apps become more common and popular, how are they affecting shoppers’ buying habits?Venkatesh Shankar, Professor of Marketing; Director of Research, Center for Retailing Studies, Texas A&M UniversityUnnati Narang, Ph.D. student in Business Administration (Marketing), Texas A&M UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/879722017-12-01T00:39:23Z2017-12-01T00:39:23ZWhy Silicon Valley wants you to text and drive<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/196794/original/file-20171128-28866-sv5qh1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Tech companies want to reduce conflict between texting and driving.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/texting-while-driving-car-irresponsible-man-719930443">Tero Vesalainen/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As self-driving cars come closer to being common on American roads, much of the rhetoric promoting them has to do with safety. <a href="https://www.nhtsa.gov/press-releases/nhtsa-data-shows-traffic-deaths-77-percent-2015">About 40,000 people die</a> on U.S. roads every year, and driver errors are linked to <a href="https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812115">more than 90 percent of crashes</a>. But many of the biggest advocates of autonomous vehicles aren’t car companies looking to improve the safety of their existing products. Huge backing for self-driving technologies is coming from Silicon Valley giants like <a href="https://www.google.com/selfdrivingcar/">Google</a> and <a href="https://www.engadget.com/2017/11/22/apple-research-self-driving-cars/">Apple</a>.</p>
<p>Those of us who have studied the relationship between technology and society tend to look more carefully at the motivations behind any technological push. In this case, it’s clear that in addition to addressing safety concerns, Silicon Valley firms have a strong incentive to create a new venue for increasing the use of their digital devices. Every minute people spend on their mobile phones provides data – and often money – to tech companies.</p>
<p>At present, digital devices and driving are in conflict: There are serious, often fatal, consequences when <a href="https://www.nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/distracted-driving">drivers use smartphones to talk or to text</a>. Regulators and safety advocates look to resolve that conflict by banning phone use while driving – as has happened in <a href="http://www.ncsl.org/research/transportation/cellular-phones-use-and-texting-while-driving-laws.aspx">virtually every state</a>. But the tech companies are taking a different approach. The obvious answer for Silicon Valley is creating an automobile in which continuous cellphone use no longer poses a threat to anyone.</p>
<h2>Not a new idea</h2>
<p>The idea of a car so capable a driver is not needed isn’t new. As far back as the 1950s, the Saturday Evening Post ran an illustration imagining a family playing a board game (in a convertible!) as the car conducts itself down the road. When self-driving cars actually take to the streets in large numbers, today’s families likely won’t be playing Scrabble – though Words With Friends and other mobile games are a near certainty. Every passenger is likely to be using a mobile device.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/195880/original/file-20171122-6027-1syyjk2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/195880/original/file-20171122-6027-1syyjk2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/195880/original/file-20171122-6027-1syyjk2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=607&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/195880/original/file-20171122-6027-1syyjk2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=607&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/195880/original/file-20171122-6027-1syyjk2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=607&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/195880/original/file-20171122-6027-1syyjk2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=763&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/195880/original/file-20171122-6027-1syyjk2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=763&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/195880/original/file-20171122-6027-1syyjk2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=763&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A self-driving car depicted in the 1950s.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Saturday Evening Post</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In recent years, the amount of time adults spend on their mobile devices (beyond actual phone calls) has grown rapidly. At the moment, it’s <a href="https://hackernoon.com/how-much-time-do-people-spend-on-their-mobile-phones-in-2017-e5f90a0b10a6">around four hours a day</a> for the average adult in the U.S. However, that rapid growth is likely to slow down as people run out of time that’s available for them to use their devices.</p>
<p>Unless, of course, there’s a new block of time that suddenly opens up. The average American now spends <a href="http://www.newsroom.aaa.com/2016/09/americans-spend-average-17600-minutes-driving-year/">about 48 minutes in a car every day</a>, a sizable opportunity for increased cellphone use.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Chris Urmson, then director of Google’s self-driving car program, discusses Google’s efforts to advance autonomous vehicles.</span></figcaption>
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<p>Chris Urmson, former director of Google’s self-driving car project, made this interest clear in a 2016 talk, saying that autonomous vehicles offer the “exciting” possibility of creating “<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uj-rK8V-rik">another room for you</a>” where, among other activities, you can watch videos. The investment analysts at Morgan Stanley have talked about autonomous cars becoming a “<a href="http://www.investors.com/news/technology/apple-alphabet-could-gain-if-self-driving-cars-are-4th-video-screen/">fourth screen</a>” in Americans’ lives (in addition to the home TV, personal computer and mobile phones or tablets). Perhaps the most explicit declaration of this interest came from Jia Yueting, co-founder of the budding Chinese automaker LeEco, when he said, “We see the car in the future as <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-autoshow-beijing-china-leeco-insight-idUSKCN0XL11X">an extension of the internet</a>, another entry point for us to sell web-based content and services.”</p>
<p>So as the public conversation around autonomous cars highlights the safety advantages, don’t forget the tech industry’s powerful desire for more profits, which goes well beyond simply saving us from ourselves.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/87972/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jack Barkenbus does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Why do tech companies care so much about self-driving cars? If drivers no longer need to pay attention to the road, they can use their mobile devices even more.Jack Barkenbus, Visiting Scholar, Vanderbilt Institute for Energy & Environment, Vanderbilt UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.