Chapter 10:
Work and Wealth

The topic of how information technology and automation affect the workplace is not very prevalent in the episode. This Black Mirror episode mainly focuses on aspects of information privacy and the dangers that come with failing to protect one’s information, not how technology affects the workplace. The episode takes place in a modern time period with completely realistic technology, nothing about the setting is futuristic or advanced. The episode does however portray some modern ways that technology has advanced the workplace.

The major example of this is how the hacker uses his victims’ cellphones to communicate what their next tasks are. The cell phone is a quick and efficient way to communicate tasks to people. In a 2016 study by Samsung, employees at Frost & Sullivan who used mobile devices and applications in the workplace saw a productivity increase of 34% [1]. By using a cellphone to communicate the hacker was able to quickly get updates from his victims on the status of their work, as well as give them new work to do once they finished the job. This functions similarly to how cellphones increase workplace efficiency, they offer a quick and easy way to communicate between work colleagues.

[1] Turek, Melanie. “Employees Say Smartphones Boost Productivity.” Samsung Business Insights, 20 Sept. 2021, https://insights.samsung.com/2016/08/03/employees-say-smartphones-boost-productivity-by-34-percent-frost-sullivan-research/