It has plenty of anecdotes about how Big Tech companies manipulate people, but it's more of a "how did we get to where this is even possible" story. Here's a bit from a review that gets across one of the book's key ideas (the "dispossession cycle") and gives you an idea of what you could expect:
To be sure, Big Tech encountered resistance each step of the way. Its response has repeatedly followed what Zuboff calls the “dispossession cycle”: a sequence of maneuvers by which a company takes what it wants and grinds down obstructions in its path. First comes “incursion”: the act of seizing undefended territory without regard for existing laws and norms, whether it’s personal data, cars for hire, rooms for rent, or the contents of libraries. Not only the company but also its consumers must set aside moral qualms. Zuboff’s decision to begin her account with Google in 2000 means that she neglects the earlier history of radical indifference on the Internet—notably, Napster’s normalization of copyright violation, in 1999. A lawsuit halted Napster, in 2001, but it set an example. Sean Parker, its co-founder, went on to become Facebook’s first president.
In the face of organized opposition, the company practices “habituation”: wearing down challengers through years of litigation, media misdirection, and political manipulation, until the land grab becomes established fact. In the face of general public dismay, the company deploys “adaptation”: a performance of contrition, apologizing for regrettable mishaps and promising improvements. “We failed badly here,” Google said after the Street View controversy. “We are mortified by what happened.” Facebook has perfected the same song and dance. Mark Zuckerberg, the company’s co-founder and C.E.O., had it down when he was a Harvard undergraduate, apologizing to women’s groups for his Facemash experiment. “I definitely see how my intentions could be seen in the wrong light,” he said. Finally comes “redirection,” in which the problematic initiative not only fails to stop but expands in scope. As Zuboff points out, the very idea of privacy is antithetical to the viability of a corporation like Google or Facebook.
It has plenty of anecdotes about how Big Tech companies manipulate people, but it's more of a "how did we get to where this is even possible" story. Here's a bit from a review that gets across one of the book's key ideas (the "dispossession cycle") and gives you an idea of what you could expect: