Digital slavery, time for abolition?
Abstract
Slavery is a powerful and emotive term describing an abhorrent infringement of fundamental human rights and should not be applied casually. I relate the practice of slavery to two different concepts of “alienation from self”: first, as being “owned” as property by a third party; and, second, as being “owned” in a more informal, contemporary sense, through the removal of an individual’s ability to govern her own life. This dual meaning of alienation from self leads me to consider self-ownership in a legal sense as well as, less formally, as having the agency to determine one’s own life. From both perspectives I claim that the increasing trafficking of personal data to supply algorithm-based analytics and AI is enabling a new form of digital enslavement that has the potential to curtail liberty and cause harm. I suggest that the conceptualization of problematic digital practices as a new form of slavery is a much needed addition to the mainstream critique of the collection, aggregation and trafficking of personal data, which has focused mostly on individual privacy. This focus, in turn, has obscured and diminished the seriousness of concerns about collective and individual autonomy.
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Amazon, Google, and Microsoft have constructed data centers in Africa and Southeast Asia, attracted by cheap electricity and limited governance oversight.
“Amazon, Google, and Microsoft have constructed data centers in Africa and Southeast Asia, attracted by cheap electricity and limited governance oversight.”
From Artificial Intelligence Colonialism: Environmental Damage, Labor Exploitation, and Human Rights Crises in the Global South (2024) · cites this paper as [33]
In Kenya, energy-intensive data centers by global tech companies raise significant concerns about the long-term sustainability of AI development in these regions.
“In Kenya, where droughts and environmental crises have worsened recently, energy-intensive data centers by global tech companies raise significant concerns about the long-term sustainability of AI development in these regions.32,33,34,35”
From Artificial Intelligence Colonialism: Environmental Damage, Labor Exploitation, and Human Rights Crises in the Global South (2024) · cites this paper as [33]
Major tech companies, largely in the Global North, outsource tasks like data labeling and content moderation to countries such as India, Kenya, and the Philippines.
“Major tech companies, largely in the Global North, outsource tasks like data labeling and content moderation to countries such as India, Kenya, and the Philippines.19,20,21,22,23,24,25”
From Artificial Intelligence Colonialism: Environmental Damage, Labor Exploitation, and Human Rights Crises in the Global South (2024) · cites this paper as [19]
Workers in these regions earn as little as $1.50 per hour and face precarious conditions with minimal social safety protections.
“Workers in these regions, earning as little as $1.50 per hour, face precarious conditions with minimal social safety protections.”
From Artificial Intelligence Colonialism: Environmental Damage, Labor Exploitation, and Human Rights Crises in the Global South (2024) · cites this paper as [19]
Cites
Unique in the Crowd: The privacy bounds of human mobility
de Montjoye, Y.-A., Hidalgo, C. A., Verleysen, M., & Blondel, V. D. (2013) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/srep01376 · Cited by 1,645 · see citing works
An impulse to exploit: the behavioral turn in data-driven marketing
Nadler, A., & McGuigan, L. (2018) · Critical Studies in Media Communication · doi:10.1080/15295036.2017.1387279 · Cited by 92 · see citing works
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Regilme, S. S. F. (2024) · SAIS Review of International Affairs · doi:10.1353/sais.2024.a950958 · Cited by 65 · see citing works
“19,20,21,22,23,24,25 Workers in these regions, earning as 1.50 per hour, face precarious conditions with minimal social safety protections. deliberate strategy to maximize profits while minimizing costs, at the expense of vulnerable populations.”
Influential
- Authors
- Chisnall, M.
- Affiliations
- University of Canberra (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Chisnall, Mick
- Venue
- Policy Studies
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2020-02-05
- Volume
- 41
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 488-506
- ISSN
- 0144-2872 (ISSN-L)
- 1470-1006
- OpenAlex
- W3004496725
- Cited by
- 34
- References
- 2
- Citations by year
- 2026: 9 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 6
- FWCI
- 31.07
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Policy Studies (publishedVersion)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Law › Digitalization, Law, and Regulation
- Social Sciences › Safety Research › Ethics and Social Impacts of AI
- Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Industrial relations › Legal and Labor Studies
- Keywords
- digital slavery, self-ownership, self-alienation, artificial intelligence, autonomy, privacy, human rights, freedom
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