I came across an interesting App on my Twitter feed a few weeks ago. A new startup in India has developed an app accessible only via cell phone on both the iPhone and Android platforms. Its called
Here’s the unique thing, unlike Twitter or Facebook – GovernEye does not ask for Personal Identifiable Information like an email address or the cell phone number of its users. Its eventual funding model relies on targeted ads. So if no personal information is collected how are those ads targeted? Whilst data collected during registration does not uniquely identify individuals, data such date of birth and level of education and languages
There are many examples where social media has been used to corrupt democratic institutions and processes. Is GovernEye a potential solution for modern democracies around the world?
- The process of user registration does not require personally identifiable information data (no email, name or telephone) is required for users to register for this app.
Initially, GoverEye was only available via a browser-based front end. Some users continue to continue to use the browser front end. Eventually, GovernEye will only be available via an App (Android and Apple) not available via awebsite .GovernEye has no connections to Application Programming Interfaces (API) with other applications. User account creation must be a manual process.- Users’ approximate location can be inferred from the IP address, choice of voting constituencies and language preferences. Explicit user location is not collected.
- India some villages share a single cell phone between multiple users so it is common to have multiple users associated with a single device.
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