Tech Bullies That Should Be Erased from the World

In today’s digital landscape, we’re increasingly bombarded with unnecessary, intrusive, and downright frustrating experiences. Tech companies seem intent on normalizing these annoyances, conditioning users to simply accept them. Here’s a look at some of the most aggravating issues plaguing our tech experiences:

Rejecting Unnecessary Cookies: Harder Than Building the Website Itself

Thanks to GDPR, websites must seek consent for non-essential, tracking cookies. But instead of complying in good faith, many sites—often run by profit-driven corporations—have devised sneaky workarounds. Users are bombarded with pop-ups claiming these cookies are “just for improving the customer experience,” when in reality, they’re used to gather data, influence decisions, and target ads. Rejecting cookies often feels like solving a maze of “deny” buttons buried behind layers of deliberately confusing options.

Forced Logins for Accessing Public Content

Once upon a time, forums required registration to access certain content. This trend thankfully faded for a while, but it’s now re-emerging on social platforms, led by giants like Instagram. To view even the most public content, you now need an account. This manipulative tactic pressures holdouts into creating accounts, pushing more people onto their platforms. It’s a forceful nudge that feels unfair and anti-competitive.

Browser Discrimination: Chrome or Bust

While it may seem that we have freedom to choose our browser, web developers increasingly optimize websites only for Chrome or Chromium-based browsers. This leaves users of Firefox, Safari, and others facing compatibility issues and degraded experiences, all because some websites rely on Chrome-specific features. This “Chrome-first” approach restricts true browser choice, making it harder for non-Chrome users to access basic content online.

WinRAR and the Persistent RAR File Format

With countless open and widely supported compression formats like ZIP, 7Z, and GZ available, WinRAR’s proprietary RAR format still inexplicably lingers. This choice creates compatibility headaches for users on Linux, macOS, and even Android. Despite the fact that Windows has natively supported ZIP since XP, many people still compress files in RAR, forcing others to download third-party software. A universal plea: please use open formats, so we can finally say goodbye to the outdated RAR.

Mandatory 3D Secure for Online Payments

3D Secure can add a helpful layer of protection to online transactions, but some websites make it mandatory even for cards that don’t require it. This forces users through extra verification steps—while ironically, unscrupulous platforms have no problem debiting accounts stealthily. The forced 3D Secure step complicates legitimate transactions for users trying to make simple purchases, adding frustration where security isn’t really a concern.

Unnecessary Personal Data for Shopping

With the rise of e-commerce, we’re now constantly asked for excessive personal data like billing addresses and phone numbers, even when a simple email is sufficient for receipts and follow-ups. Companies harvest this data for advertising or worse, resell it to third parties. The result? Spam calls, endless marketing emails, and personal data floating around in places it doesn’t belong.

These are just a few examples of the unnecessary friction points embedded into modern technology. If companies focused more on enhancing user experience instead of exploiting it, our digital interactions would be far less frustrating.