Shouldn’t we treat Facebook & co like all the other drugs?

As more and more people realize the addictive potential of Facebook & co, we should start talking about regulation.

Will Facebook share the fate of cocaine?

When cocaine started to get attention in our western world in around 1880, famous people such as Sigmund Freud were consuming it. At this time, the danger of cocaine was only gradually recognized. As soon as it’s risks were uncovered, society decided to ban it.

Nowadays, with a growing body of scientific evidence, we start to uncover and understand the dangers of apps such as Facebook, Netflix and co.

The way we are consuming these apps is very naive. Similar to the people in the 1880's were very naive in the way they consumed cocaine.

Also similar to physical drugs, digital drugs lead to huge profits for some. And just like the drug bosses in Colombia, the bosses of Facebook & Co know exactly what they are doing.

For me it’s clear that we need some rules for these digital drugs. Maybe some apps should require a minimum age, similar to smoking or consuming alcohol. Maybe certain practices should be forbidden all together.

So perhaps in 10 years from now, we look back and wonder how naively we have used these digital drugs.