The promise is security. Endless verifications, codes, PINs, one-time passwords, device confirmations. A chain of steps that multiply every year.
Access depends on the right device, the right browser, the right confirmation sent to another device that may itself require another login.
We must constantly prove that we are ourselves. Our property is rarely under our control. Access can be revoked, to allow companies to protect themselves from risk and liability.
At what point does security stop protecting the user and start protecting the system from the user?
If access to our data, documents, and communications depends entirely on external platforms, what does ownership actually mean?