The Perils of Algorithmic Hiring and Title VII
In 2013 , it was estimated that worldwide we had produced over 4 zettabytes of data . 10 A zettabyte is the equivalent of a trillion gigabytes . This is expected to rise to over 44 zettabytes by the year 2020 . 11 People produce a large amount of information every day . From snapping photos on their phones to something sending Tweets or browsing the Internet , little pieces of information add up to create a large amount of information about individuals . Internet marketers have been tapping into this for years . When a person searches for a product on Amazon , they ’ ll later see advertisements for that product show up on other websites they visit . 12 A person ’ s shopping preferences and browsing habits are remembered , and used to directly market to them electronically . These criteria are also available for harvesting and use by companies offering algorithmic hiring services .
The digital age and the breadth of information it has made available are both creating new problems and eroding the protections enacted to combat old problems . Former President Obama requested a study on how “ Big Data ” will transform the lives of Americans . 13 Exploring the dangers and the impacts in the public sector , this study represented President Obama ’ s forward-thinking nature in understanding a problem that would transcend his presidency . Key areas under government control , such as healthcare , education , homeland security , law enforcement , and privacy law , 14 are all expected to undergo rapid changes due to these tools in the coming years . In the private sector , the benefits and risks of Big Data warned about in the study are quickly coming to pass . The complete secrecy that algorithms operate under has left almost no meaningful ways to identify harm , or allow for way to hold a discriminating decision maker responsible . 15 Moreover , individuals impacted by algorithms are unable to understand , or contest either the information that has been
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