Metadata are data about data, secondary information about our data footprint that can be used to fully reconstruct individual profiles and collective behaviours. Even if they are anonymized, they remain the invisible and most important currency of the digital economy. What are the risks for individual privacy and what can be revealed by metadata analysis? In this workshop, metadata will be used not to study people, but to examine the logic and structure of algorithmic control. Facebook datasets and tracking techniques will be under scrutiny. By exploring and playing with this metadata, participants will understand the impact that algorithms have on individuals and society as a whole.

With: Claudio Agosti and Nayantara Ranganathan (ALEX – Algorithm Exposed campaign)