Pegasus and us- Nothing new for India’s Northeast?

The possibility of our government snooping on us using malicious malware, and allegedly behind high profile arrests and assassinations, are some of the most explosive revelations of our times brought to us in the Pegasus investigations. Government spyware technology, however, has been a commonplace…

Internet shutdowns in “digital” Northeast India

As India makes a big push for a complete digital switchover of our lives from biometrics, voting rights, banks and online transactions, access to the internet in several parts remain erratic and inequitable. In this episode of Cyber Democracy, activist Nonibala Narengbam and educationist Kopele Me…

Coming home to barbs and brickbats

In this episode, we look at how people in the Northeast region have experienced harassment in the form of trolling, abuses and threats by unapologetically being themselves online. From facing backlash for posting a photo, expressing an opinion contrary to popular belief or group think and/or receiv…

Criminalising thoughts on Facebook

In this episode, we delve into freedom of expression, an issue fraught with several complexities in a place like the Northeast. In a region that is erratically covered by the national and international media, social media has become the great equaliser in informing the world about what’s happening …

Violence and privacy invasions within intimate relationships in digital spaces

In this episode of Cyber Democracy, Host Radhika Radhakrishnan spoke to author, artist and storyteller, Indu Harikumar about digital violence and privacy invasions within intimate relationships. What does such violence look like? How do people experience it? How do they respond to it? Being an edi…

Performing sexuality, desire and pleasure online

The Internet can be a fascinating space, with the potential to explore our diverse identities and navigate different kinds of experiences. In this podcast, today we will explore how the Internet and social media shape expressions of sex, and the performance of sexuality, desire and pleasure online.…

Digital Platformisation of Domestic Work

The rise of the gig economy and its digital mediation has led to various online platforms for workers. Some such platforms are targeted towards domestic workers. In India, domestic workers are mostly women from marginalised castes and classes, forming an invisible backbone of the care economy. With…

Technology-mediated exclusion for social protection schemes for women

An important way to ensure that health pandemics do not turn into socio-economic crises is through social protection, which ensures that the livelihoods of the poor and marginalised remain protected. During COVID-19, the Indian government implemented various social protection schemes for the poor, …

Gendered access to Internet at home during COVID-19

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit India, and a national lockdown was ordered, we were pushed back into the space of our homes. Because of this, our ability to survive and continue livelihoods has been hinged on our access to mobile phones and the Internet, But what does this mean for people who do not…

Future of Labour Post COVID-19: Part 3

COVID has accelerated automation of labour and has forced monitoring of workers and their bodies. This excessive collection of data of labour not only brings in the question of violations of their right to privacy but other issues of labour rights and their violations by the platforms. The forceful…