Pax Technica: How the Internet of Things May Set Us Free or Lock Us Up

"Should we fear or welcome the internet's evolution? The "internet of things" is the rapidly growing network of everyday objects eyeglasses, cars, thermostats made smart with sensors and internet addresses. Soon we will live in a pervasive yet invisible network of everyday objects that communicate with one another. In this original and provocative book, Philip N. Howard envisions a new world order emerging from this great transformation in the technologies around us. Howard calls this new era a Pax Technica. He looks to a future of global stability built upon device networks with immense potential for empowering citizens, making government transparent, and broadening information access. Howard cautions, however, that privacy threats are enormous, as is the potential for social control and political manipulation. Drawing on evidence from around the world, he illustrates how the internet of things can be used to repress and control people. Yet he also demonstrates that if we actively engage with the governments and businesses building the internet of things, we have a chance to build a new kind of internet and a more open society".
A technology expert describes a possible future, and its repercussions in the area of privacy, social control and political manipulation, of a world where more and more things, like eyeglasses, thermostats and home security systems are reliant on the Internet.
Looks at the rapidly growing network of smart everyday objects, from eyeglasses to cars, and the potential it has for such positives as citizen empowerment and government transparency, as well as negatives like social control and political manipulation.
A foremost digital expert looks at the most powerful political tool ever created the internet of things. Will it be like the internet of surveillance and censorship we have now, or will it be something better?