Smartphones knowing your 'location, interests and fears' is like the Antichrist, Russian church head says

(Image credit: ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP/Getty Images)

published 8 January 2019

The Russian Orthodox Church's interpretation of the Antichrist sounds a little bit like Facebook.

In an interview aired Monday, Patriarch Kirill of the church told Russian state TV that smartphones have too much influence over humanity. That control over and knowledge of our "location, interests, and fears" could make us susceptible to the "Antichrist," he said, per The Moscow Times.

Kirill, who leads the church's 100 million members, said he wasn't opposed to technological advancement. But he's worried that, with smartphones, "someone can know exactly where you are, know exactly what you are interested in, know exactly what you are afraid of," per The Associated Press. "Antichrist is the person who will be at the head of the world wide web that controls the entire human race," he added.

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Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.

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