We are all worried about Big Tech. Tom Kemp has taken action. His book breaks down the challenges of taking on Big Tech, the role of Section 230, and how we can all better protect our privacy. Kemp has extensive experience working with local, state, and national governments on issues that should concern us all. As we move deeper into an AI-driven world, understanding the underpinnings of large language models is crucial. This is an important read for anyone, and that should be all of us, worried about the future of technology.

I found this book to be very informative. It is obvious that the author has done a very detail research of the topic, citing many sources and is obviously very familiar with the topic. Unlike many ‘discovery’ books, the author provides actual specific action steps designed to address the problems identified in the book. Well written, easy to understand, with a good level of detail, I think this book will provide readers with much to think about and consider as they consume all the “free” online content. Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

What an incredible read! 'Containing Big Tech' is the book we need right now. Tom Kemp has put together an incredibly well-researched, comprehensive, and well-written overview of how Big Tech has gone too far with detailed, actionable steps of what can be done to mitigate its monopoly control. Of all the books I've read on online privacy, social media, etc., it by far proposes the most realistic solutions that make it feel like change is possible.

I especially loved the section at the end about how to protect your own online privacy and how Tom Kemp detailed the specific steps to take on each platform to minimize how much data Big Tech is collecting. Incredibly important! Will be recommending to anyone I know!

The book gave a good introduction to privacy concerns with big tech companies to those who are unfamiliar with this topic. However, I wish there were more examples from countries in the Global South and went more in depth about how people from developing nations are exploited into the development of technologies from the Global North.

A really excellent survey of the major conceptual and policy issues with big tech, with useful comparisons to laws passed in the EU and elsewhere to contrast with the state of US policy. Maybe some ground retread for those who are keeping up with these topics, but doubtless an essential reference heading into the coming years.

It's not unusual to come across an article about big tech and privacy. It's another story to find a book that walks through the various big tech companies and all the ways they vacuum up your data and share it with other companies, like data brokers. Containing Big Tech is illuminating, and considering all the ways one's personal data is captured, parsed, analyzed, and propagated is frankly overwhelming. That said, ignorance isn't bliss and better to know than not.

Containing Big Tech also goes into related topics like online safety, identity theft, as well as extremism and disinformation. Sadly, big tech companies often realize they're creating opportunities for extremism and disinformation but rationalize it away by focusing on (their) business benefit of increased engagement.

After learning all the ways one's data is accessed and used, the appendices offer relief via ways to protect one's online privacy and ingredients for a comprehensive U.S. privacy law. A few states have passed data privacy legislation but generally laws haven't kept up with data privacy risks.

This was an interesting read and I highly recommend it.

We are, as a society, in serious danger. A lot of things that were once difficult to find effective ways to influence and manipulate are becoming trivially easy to do. The perpetrators of this violation of our essential freedom to be safe in our own heads have, in eight concise chapters, each been named and shamed, their tactics analyzed and the consequences of them sketched out, by one of their own.

True, it wasn't like any of them were trying to fly under the radar about this...for a famous example, Jeff Bezos clearly said he wanted to control ecommerce way back when, but really only accidentally:
When his goals did slip out, they were improbably grandiose. Though the startup’s focus was clearly on books, <blockquote>Davis recalls Bezos saying he wanted to build “the next Sears,” a lasting company that was a major force in retail. {An investor who was also a} kayaking enthusiast...remembers Bezos telling him that he envisioned a day when the site would sell not only books about kayaks but kayaks themselves, subscriptions to kayaking magazines, and reservations for kayaking trips—everything related to the sport. “I thought he was a little bit crazy,” says {the investor}.</blockquote>
<I>(source: The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon by Brad Stone)</i>

What this immense ambition created was The Literal Everything Store, used by everyone even marginally online at some point for something they need or want. They might not even realize it's Amazon they're doing business with...how many of even the most committed Amazonphobes know who hosts their online commercial interactions? or where bricks-and-mortar stores buy their stock?...but their data is in some way harvested by Amazon. The other members of Big Tech's five brothers are dealt similar serious blows to their frequently protested innocence of maleficent intent and wrongdoing in the moral if not the legal sense.

It's part of their business plans to amass a chillingly immense digital dossier on every internet user by the entire tech industry. The purpose is to make them incomprehensible piles of money; they then use that money, extracted directly and indirectly from your pockets, to influence the course of world events on political and economic stages to benefit themselves and themselves alone. Refer back to 1953, when the famous kludged-up quote "What’s good for General Motors is good for America" was supposedly said by a GM exec being vetted by the Senate for a senior government job. (The truth is more nuanced, if less punchy.) The usual course of a person interested in the US's economic health is to consult the newspaper or equivalent's reporting of the stock market's performance. How this casino capitalism came to be conflated with the country's overall economic health is outside the book's or this review of it's scope, but is part of the larger picture painted herein of the actions taken by the surveillance economy's owners and drivers.

The means of information gathering and opinion-sharing are increasingly in the hands of the same few corporate entities that harvest your data and the windfalls it generates. The AI revolution we're relentlessly being told is coming has lifted the increasingly fragile casino economy's entirely notional values into new superstratospheric heights. Go look at Nvidia's stock prices then its history to see what I'm talking about. The way to make people believe something is inevitable is to tell them over and over again that it is, and that includes the inevitability of Big Tech's dominance. In these eight chapters, the author presents a very good case for what each player in the surveillance capitalism/totalitarian state apparatus's purpose is in pursuing its goals. In the appendices he outlines the personal, as well as the societal, steps one can take to corral the presently untrammelled ability these corporate actors have to present only information and opinion positively inclined towards them and their agenda.

A book that blares alarms at you without offering actionable items to prevent or mitigate the warnings taking place or effect isn't doing a service but simply further harm. I think the author here is doing a great service by performing both the warning function about the problems we're facing and the directions they're approaching us from, and outlining potential solutions on actionable on multiple fronts.

I'd like to stress that my use of "actionable" with such regularity is intentional and meant to convey my personal sense of urgency in addressing these issues. I think reading this book will convince many to stop wondering if it's even worth paying attention to these issues of surveillance and manipulation, and start taking steps to mitigate the harms being caused by the overreach of an identifiable coterie of bad actors.

That means I'd really like you to read it. Get it from the author's website linked above. Get it from Amazon, they sell it. Get your local library to buy one or two and check one out. Just get it and its ideas in your heads.

It's not exaggerating to say that, if the AI future being drummed into us as inevitable comes to pass, we're going to need the checks and balances in this book to survive with even a whisper of autonomy intact.
*my blogged review contains links to sources

Ebook received for free through NetGalley

I ended up listening to the audiobook rather than reading the book but overall it sounded like it was written well. Overall a good listen.

This is a pretty thorough guide to how the biggest tech companies operate and what their actions mean to users and consumers. It's fairly current and relevant, which is surprising considering how fast the field of tech moves. I do think it will probably feel redundant for anyone who keeps up with tech news and has looked into AI, data collection and online privacy recently, but I also think this would make a great gift for the friend or family member who doesn't fully understand why they should be concerned about Meta collecting all of their data. Appendix 1, "protecting your online privacy", could have been much longer in my opinion, but it's still an important part of the book as it is and Kemp's notes provide some additional information. Something about this book feels a bit repetitive, but I can't decide if it's the writing style (it's clear and concise, so no complaints here) or the topic itself - had this not been a NetGalley book, I probably would have DNF based on the fact that I do actually keep up with tech industry news. Regardless, I think it's important that this book exists, both for people who have limited knowledge of today's big tech and for future reference (imagine coming back to this in two-three years and seeing how things have changed).

Tom Kemp's CONTAINING BIG TECH grabbed my attention and never let it go in a powerful, convincing, fact-based discussion of the questionnable power of the huge companies that support our lives and undermine them at the.same time. The detailed information and insider perspective made the book a must-read for this tech-innocent person. I'd love to see the book and its premise gain greater discussion and start the important, boundary-setting actions we need to make as individuals and communities to use what serves us and discard the rest. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

Tom Kemp’s “Containing Big Tech” is an excellent book for anyone interested in learning about the threats posed by the practices and procedures of firms like Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and even relative newcomer TikTok.

Mr. Kemp has delivered a well-researched, clearly written treatise. While it grants that “Big Tech” brings us many benefits, it also warns, among other things, of the monopoly-like power enjoyed by these firms, their data mining and collection efforts, their digital surveillance of us all, their relationships with data brokers, and their development of and commitment to Artificial Intelligence (AI); all of which may be harmful to our economy, our privacy, and even our democracy.

Mr. Kemp also reviews the state of international and federal, state, and local laws regulating these areas and advocates for improvements and tougher government oversight. Most helpfully, he includes an appendix explaining some of the steps users can take to lessen their online footprints and better protect their privacy.

I’m not all that tech-savvy, so there were times when some material seemed over my head. Nevertheless, I had no trouble understanding Mr. Kemp's main points. And I came away from “Containing Big Tech” believing I’d learned important information.

My thanks to NetGalley, author Tom Kemp, and publisher Greenleaf Book Group for providing me with an electronic ARC. The foregoing is my independent opinion.

Tom Kemp's book is several books in one volume. It is a detailed history on how Microsoft, Google, Meta/Facebook, Amazon and Apple have become the tech powerhouses and near-monopolists with their stranglehold on digital services, at the same time threatening our privacy. It is a reference work for consumers who are concerned about what private information is shared by these vendors, and how to take back control over their data. It is a sad tale about the lack of legislative forward motion in the US and how the EU has forged ahead with their own laws in this area -- only to be lightly enforced.

Kemp focuses on eight different areas of interest, one per chapter. For example, one chapter describes some startling failures at reigning in the data broker industry and another goes into details about how easily disinformation has prevailed and thrived in the past decade.

Even if you are a privacy buff, you probably don't know that Meta's tracking Pixel is used by a third of the world's most popular websites and is at the heart of numerous privacy lawsuits, especially in Europe. (https://techhq.com/2023/07/why-is-the-meta-pixel-at-heart-of-data-privacy-cases/)

Kemp doesn't pull any punches -- he lays blame at the feet of these Big Tech vendors and our state and federal legislators. He documents the missteps that the major tech vendors have taken, all in the service of their almighty algorithms and with the aim of increasing engagement, no matter the costs to society, or to its most at-risk members -- namely children.

You may have taken some of the privacy-enhancing steps he outlines in one of the book's appendices, but probably will learn some new tricks to hide your identity.

The "Conclusion" chapter and the appendices are where I will be drawing attention to.

Pointing something out is not the same as resolving it. Both are necessary for us to have the feeling of agency in our lives. I agree with Kemp's statement, "My goal with each [chapter] is to offer solutions and provide a clear path forward to help individuals and policymakers advocate for change.

Appendix 1 speaks to "ways in which we can protect our online privacy". Appendix 2 is titled "Ingredients for a Comprehensive US Privacy Law. These are moments in which we can act on information pointed out in Chapters 1 - 8.

The various 8 chapters give information on "the mining and collecting of our data and the negative consequences that have emerged because of this."; "how Big Tech consumes and processes the mined data" and exploits it; and "how Big Tech's dominant market positions have harmed entrepreneurship and innovation and undermined journalism and a vibrant free press".

And I agree with Kemp that it's not a matter of stopping Big Tech -- it's a matter of taking the necessary steps to contain the threats and excesses of Big Tech. "And, in doing so, ensure our civil rights are respected and preserved, our economy is competitive, and our democracy is protected--so we all win." {Kemp quote in the Introduction)

The "Notes" section is full of referral links to further explore. That is one of the things I enjoy about the e-book -- the links are easily reachable. Granted, links "break" as information is moved about, however, the reference to more material is there to help us step on the path to finding more information.

Thank you to both #NetGalley and Greenleaf Book Group/Fast Company Press for providing me an advance copy of Tom Kemp’s #nonfiction work, Containing Big Tech, in exchange for an honest review.

#ContainingBigTech is essentially an extended journal/research article about how #BigTech has and continues to infiltrate our lives. The text serves as a high-level overview for laypersons who are interested in learning more about the tech landscape, or as a general refresher for subject matter experts.

While not novel to anyone who follows tech, the work manages to explain difficult concepts in a simplistic way, covering everything from digital surveillance to artificial intelligence. The author also offers two appendixes after the conclusion—one that briefly touches upon how consumers can quickly update their privacy settings on various Big Tech services, and the other regarding the crucial provisions needed for a federal privacy law.

For a space that moves at a rapid clip, the author was able to provide fresh examples. There were only a few instances where a case has already been decided or additional laws have passed. So, bravo!

My one pet peeve was the number of times the phrase “for example” was used. Again, I received an advance copy. Thus, the work may be edited before it is officially released. In other words, don’t let that stop you from reading it.