Dark Side of Design

A short introduction to the new philosophical, dystopian, and reflective podcast from Raft --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/darksideofdesign/message

The first full episode opens the discussion on what digital security means for designers and why it's important. Security of digital systems has long been the responsibility of developers and engineers. But now that digital security is a day-to-day topic for consumers, how do things need to change? What needs to be done to ensure that personal data, personal dwellings, and products at large, are safer and more secure. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/darksideofdesign/message

If designers are still asking for a seat at the table, no seat is more important than that of a person who decides life and death situations. With the rise of self-driving cars, the inevitable decision of who lives and dies will eventually need to be designed. This week we look at the uncomfortable position of designing for situations of death around self-driving cars, why it makes designers so nervous, and why it's also important they are part of the conversation. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/darksideofdesign/message

Note, if the topic of death of suicide is difficult, this might be an episode to skip. Perhaps we've been asking the question wrong - it's not what happens when you die, but rather what is left of you after you die. As people strive to live forever in some form, the idea of who we are in death has never been more prominent. How we're remembered, and how we are perceived after death is slowly becoming a product to sell. Do designers have a role in creating such a product? Can people alter their lives as they move into their afterlife? If perception is reality, then is what we remember fungible? Should we indeed change history for those who are gone? --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/darksideofdesign/message

Blockchain has been proclaimed as market changing technology. A public method to track transactions and exchanges. But what if Blockchain is used in nefarious ways? As opposed to providing freedom through clarity, it can install authoritarian rule through tracking? In this weeks discussion we look at what happens if Blockchain is used to track and manage people and what happens if the chain is controlled by those in power. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/darksideofdesign/message

Digital ratings systems, such as star ratings at Amazon or Airbnb, are meant to inspire and build trust. But what happens when rating systems are used to control behavior. Worse, what happens when ratings against individuals are not about the individuals themselves, but the experiences around those services. This week we look at the negative effects of ratings and why designing the overall experience now matters more than ever. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/darksideofdesign/message

Changing our behavior and striving for positive reviews is becoming a normal way of life. As more companies implement ratings systems life is becoming one constant prisoner's dilemma. The impact of this could range from companies deciding what “ideal” is on a global scale, to creating a homogeneous society absent of individual historical culture. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/darksideofdesign/message

Continuing from Season 1, this episode dives deeper into asking the question “if all my friends are digital, do they need to be real”. With the rise of bots and AI, can we fulfill our basic human needs of social contact through digital means? What does it mean if we create bots in our own image (own personality bot), and what happens if they grow and change, and begin changing us. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/darksideofdesign/message