Yes, the "software should really only be measured by the value it provides" attitucde is kind of the key problem we're facing in a whole lot fields.

Because it's not really the value overall the software provides that's being talked about but the instantaneous, immediately visible payoff to a single consumer that software, the people or that consumables are getting judged by. If the software is going to result in trouble over time, if it's going to have security holes that will cost a lot over time, if it's going to commit you to garbage that's updated less and less frequently, etc. None of this calculated. Just as the health costs of sugary drinks don't get calculated, the social costs of poor education don't get calculated, etc.

Also the externalities that are never mentioned: bloat and poor performance unnecessarily takes up user's resources, frustrating them and preventing them from doing other things on their machine simultaneously, and also unnecessarily wasting electricity. Multiply that by the number of users of the software, and suddenly all that talk about "optimizing for developer time" starts to sound like "I'll save $100 for myself by inflicting $100k in externalities".

It's up to regulation - self or government imposed - to factor externalities in, change society and/or change the law

Somehow I never consider to solve a problem by delegating it to government or society. My first thought is always: there must be a technical solution for this. Even government and society are going to be solved by technology: crypto/blockchain or something which will evolve out of it.

There's no tech that specifically gets people to do the right thing. There's tech that might make people do things but that tech can be harnessed to get people to do either right or wrong things.

Even on a larger scale, the world hasn't burnt down with all the private information that's been stolen lately, has it? Have there even been any significant consequences?

Is it possible that the value assigned to keeping that information secret was, in the end, actually appropriate?

"Have there even been any significant consequences?"

Ask someone who's had their identity stolen.

It's a waste of the information stolen to use it while people are still on high alert.