## 5.3 Filter bubble

Based on how you search and the posts on social media that you liked or shared, an internet profile of you is created through the use of algorithms. With the help of these algorithms, websites and apps know who you are, what you have clicked on before, as well as what your preferences and interests are.

Based on your profile the search results for new searches and posts on social media are adjusted. As a result, you keep seeing similar information and posts; you will not see what does not match your profile according to the algorithms. This creates an information bubble around you, also known as a filter bubble. And because you no longer see information that contradicts your opinions or points of view, you become isolated in your own cultural and ideological bubble.

The danger of this filter bubble is that you base your opinion on the basis of one-sided information. This makes you less critical and easier to influence. Your filter bubble therefore deprives you of the opportunity to develop a critical attitude yourself and to form your opinion on the basis of a variety of information.

Incidentally, there are doubts about the impact of filter bubbles, so here too the rule applies: remain critical!

Find out more!

How do algorithms influence what information you see? University of the Netherlands explains it in this video: