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Pre-watch: https://youtu.be/N1oyFaOpJOo
As exposed in the video Ghana: Digital Dumping Ground, electronic waste, or e-waste, is a rapidly growing global concern that poses significant environmental and health risks to communities worldwide. According to the United Nations University, the world generated 53.6 million metric tons of e-waste in 2019 alone, with only 17.4% being properly collected and recycled. An interesting facet of the e-waste problem in Ghana specifically, is the correlation between e-waste and cybercrime.
E-waste includes discarded electronic devices such as computers and mobile phones that contain hazardous materials, including lead and mercury. The improper disposal of e-waste in dumping grounds not only contaminates soil and water sources with hazardous chemicals and heavy metals, but also leads to serious health problems for the local communities living there. The burning of e-waste to extract valuable metals can release toxic fumes into the air, which can cause respiratory problems and other health issues.
In addition to these environmental and health risks, and the increasing reliance on re-purposing e-waste for gold and copper, e-waste has also created a rising market of cybercrime. It was surprising to see that electronic devices that were flagged for recycling weren’t recycled at all. Even company led programs by mobile phone providers encouraging customers to recycle and reuse are amongst the literally tons of electronic devices that are practically hand delivered to cybercriminals who steal personal and financial information, perpetrate fraud, conduct data breaches and engage in identity theft.
In 2020, the number of cyber threats targeting mobile devices increased by 50% with an average of 5,259 attempts per minute to steal personal information online. According to a report by Cybersecurity Ventures, the global cost of cybercrime is expected to reach $10.5 trillion annually by 2025. Interestingly those of us living in the US for example, experience the e-waste problem much differently than those living in digital dumping grounds. In recognizing the issues to the environment that e-waste poses, and reducing built-in obsolescence and unnecessary capitalistic overproduction, we can save two communities at once - those who experience the effects of physical e-waste, and those who experience its effects digitally.