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Weapons of Math Destruction

Part 1: This article opens by painting the image of the general bias involved in bank loaning before the introduction of FICO scores. Once FICO scores were introduced, many people who could never borrow before were suddenly able to take part in this process. Predigest ideologies no longer stood in the way of financing. However, this concept has been taken and warped into e-scores which are compiled from information such as search history and location, assigning values to different demographics. These e-scores determine what ads different groups of people see, bringing back the inherent difference in opportunity that FICO had brought us out of. According to the article, the effort to protect the privacy of individuals' FICO scores has driven class, race, and gender boundaries deeper than ever.

Part 2: I've had many conversations about credit scores with my previous partner. He and his family are Puerto Rican, and while I prioritize raising my credit score quite a bit, he didn't consider it to be a valuable tool. He often suggested credit cards and money advances, which aren't options that I'm comfortable with. But his parents supported him in those routes, and I wondered then if our difference in views had cultural roots. Reading this article has really opened my eyes to why that might have been, considering different advertisements that would have been directed to those living in the areas he grew up in, as opposed to what I grew up seeing. I don't remember seeing many cash advance advertisements in my life, to the point where I don't even consider it as an option. These approaches to ad placement are incredibly unfair, especially when so many ads meant to prey on people are focused in specific areas. While I know I have a biased view, I do believe that credit scores are valuable tools if effectively cultivated. Unfortunately I don't think these differences in realistic accessibility are taken into consideration when credit scores are involved. And that view is only strengthened by this reading.

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