We can expect the varieties of data relations to grow massively as data colonialism itself expands. To get at the core of what we mean by a data relation, imagine yourself entering a spiral. The entry point is that at which, for whatever reason, you enter the ambit of computer monitoring. Computer tracking is now so basic to the social world that it might seem hard to imagine one not already being within that ambit, but, even so, at any moment there is always likely to be at least one specific transaction in which you are engaged that motivates the capture of particular life traces from you. It could be using a search engine, investigating a particular website, searching for a product at a good price, using a platform, or dealing with an institution (say, a school, corporation, or government).

Nick Couldry & Ulises A. Mejias, The Costs of Connection, loc. 135