Shoshana Zuboff

To understand Shoshana Zuboff, you have to begin with a power question: what happens when human experience itself becomes a source of economic extraction?

As digital platforms expanded, they began collecting vast amounts of behavioral data — searches, clicks, movements, interactions. What began as data to improve services evolved into something more systemic.

Zuboff names that shift.

At the center of her worldview is a defining claim:

She describes this system as “surveillance capitalism” — a model in which companies extract data from users, use it to predict behavior, and increasingly seek to shape that behavior for profit.

From this perspective, data is not neutral. It is a raw material. Human experience is translated into data, processed through algorithms, and turned into predictive products sold in markets, particularly advertising.

This creates a distinct form of power:

Platforms do not just observe — they intervene. Recommendation systems, targeted ads, and algorithmic feeds are designed to guide attention and action, often without users’ full awareness.

This reflects a broader framework:

Economic systems can operate by extracting and modifying human behavior itself.

Supporters see Zuboff as a critical analyst of digital power.

They argue that her work identifies a fundamental shift in how value is created in the digital economy. By naming surveillance capitalism, she provides a framework for understanding issues of privacy, autonomy, and control.

From this perspective, Zuboff expands the analysis of economic systems to include behavioral data and its role in shaping markets and society.

Critics, however, raise questions about scope and interpretation.

Some argue that data-driven systems also provide significant benefits — personalization, efficiency, and access to services — and that not all data collection constitutes exploitation.

Others question whether the term “surveillance capitalism” overgeneralizes diverse business models.

A deeper tension lies in the relationship between convenience and autonomy. Digital systems can make life easier — but they can also operate in ways that are difficult to see or control. Where is the line between service and manipulation?

Zuboff’s work emphasizes governance. She calls for new frameworks to regulate data collection, protect individual rights, and ensure that digital systems serve public rather than purely commercial interests.