(Personal) Big data extractivism and the political-legal and technological tensions related to the secret vote

Abstract

The power, scope and technological capacity of certain States and their corporations bring new and complex challenges for democracies in the 21st century. The extraction of personal big data, the creation of citizens psychographic profiles and the sending of microsegmented political propaganda can affect the secret ballot and weaken democracy.
This article reviews the case of Facebook Inc. – Cambridge Analytica in order to analyze how the extraction of personal big data, the violation of privacy and the use of psychography can favor the manipulation of people, groups, communities and populations. The article is part of a larger investigation that seeks to rethink internet regulations and strengthen democracies in the digital age.