The one-click assistant. The QR code. The collaboration invite. The private channel. The voice that sounds familiar enough. The beta app with a gorgeous interface and a vague privacy policy. These are no longer mere conveniences. They are border crossings.

Imagine Li, a materials scientist, who wakes up to a Facebook post criticizing her research interests. In her coffee break, her phone buzzes with a news alert: “Local inventor exposed by university”, but the link shows her image in a manipulated photo. Every message, ad, and even ringtone seems chosen to unsettle her. Is this a vivid coincidence… or is someone sculpting Li’s reality?