This is The Stepback , a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more on the dire state of tech regulation, follow Adi Robertson . The Stepback arrives in our subscribers’ inboxes at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here . How it started In 1973, long before the modern digital era, the US Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) published a report called “Records, Computers, and the Rights of Citizens.” Networked computers seemed “destined to become