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The Illusion of Free: How Social Media Turned Users into Products: A Critical Study of Data, Power, and the Attention Economy
Paperback
MarketingGeneral ComputersGeneral Sociology
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Publisher: Independently Published
Published: Apr 26 2026
Pages: 108
Weight: 0.34
Height: 0.22 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
What if social media is not the product-but you are?
Every day, billions of people scroll, like, share, and engage-believing they are simply using free platforms. But behind this illusion lies a powerful and carefully engineered system designed to capture attention, extract data, and shape human behaviour.
How Social Media Turned Users into Products offers a clear, critical, and deeply researched exploration of how digital platforms operate in the modern world.
Drawing on insights from sociology, economics, psychology, law, and technology, this book reveals how social media has transformed from a tool of connection into a system of control and monetisation.
Inside this book, you will discover:
- How your data is continuously collected, analysed, and sold in the digital marketplace
- How algorithms shape what you see, think, and believe-often without your awareness
- How your attention has become one of the most valuable resources in the global economy
- How platforms are designed to maximise engagement and profit, not human well-being
- How identity, relationships, and behaviour are subtly reshaped online
- What you can do to regain control, protect your privacy, and make informed choices
This is not just a book about technology-it is a book about power.
Clear, analytical, and accessible, this work challenges readers to rethink their relationship with digital platforms and to understand the hidden systems that increasingly define modern life.
In an age where data is power, awareness is protection.
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