I was amazed to find out according to a new study how many times people “touch” their cell phones each and every day.

Do you know?

Well according to this new study we touch our cell phones an 2,617 times per day.  I know I certainly do not so I must really bring down their average.

According to an article published in the New York Times they state that because of the number of times we actually use our cell phones each day technology companies are tracking users’:

social media posts, calls, scrolls and clicks in search of behavior changes that could correlate with disease symptoms. Some of these services are opt-in. At least one is not.

The one that is not an “opt-in” is suicidal thoughts.

One of those technology companies which is attempting to use your social media site to determine your mood is Facebook.

Facebook recently announced;

that it was using artificial intelligence to scan posts and live video streams on its social network for signs of possible suicidal thoughts. If the system detects certain language patterns — such as friends posting comments like “Can I help?” or “Are you O.K.?” — it may assign a certain algorithmic score to the post and alert a Facebook review team.

Are you comfortable that this scan that Facebook is performing is not an “opt-in” service?

I am certainly not, we have no idea what Facebook is actually doing with this artificial intelligence (AI) software.  I certainly do not trust a government or private company to scan my social websites or cell phone to snoop in on me.  We have seen that Facebook’s main objective is to make money, which is what any private companies’ main objective is.  Without making money they would not be able to survive.

Facebook states that in some cases when their AI software determines that someone may be suicidal they send the user a supportive notice with suggestions like “Call a helpline.” Facebook has also acknowledged that when their AI software determines that it may be an urgent case they will contact local authorities to dispatch help to the user’s location. Facebook has actually done this over 100 times in one month.

Does this sound a little Orwellian to you?

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