Today, in this digital age, people use the internet every single day. As of April, 2021, 60% of the world's population now uses the internet with an average use time of 6 hours and 56 minutes per day. The internet can be useful, especially when it comes to working or studying, but it can also be dangerous and invasive.
Internet Immortality
As Juan Enriquez said in his TED Talk, everything that is willingly posted to the internet is permanent. He compares the effect to a tattoo. These digital tattoos reveal details about you whether you intend for them to or not. Because of contracts of adhesion social media users loose the rights to what they post, and companies, like Facebook and Instagram, can do almost anything they want with users' information. This information is sold over and over again to marketing companies, and (as Enriquez mentions) facial recognition is even used all in the name of profit. This invasive data mining (the collection of information on users) is completely legal although it doesn't feel like it should be because of the contracts mentioned earlier. Most people don't read the "Terms of Services" agreements before signing up for things (I know I'm guilty of doing this), but if they were to read through them, they would understand that they essentially signed up for their privacy to be invaded.
Tracking and Attacking
This is only one way that technology is used to snoop around in people's personal lives. The government also actively monitors the general public (Catherine Crump goes into detail in her TED Talk). With GPS devices in our phones and cars, it seems impossible to get away from prying eyes. For those who are concerned about this (some people don't mind, and that's perfectly okay), just going about their daily lives could be causing excess levels of stress and anxiety.
Someone's post from 10 years ago (which in now way represents who they are today) could be used against them even if they thought they'd deleted it. Personal messages can be leaked which can lead to a decline in the victim's mental health and irreversible damage to their social lives. Darieth Chisolm shared her experience of someone posting intimate photos of her without her consent, also known as "revenge porn." All of these things are terrible, but what makes them worse is that there are few laws to protect people. The government has to do something to keep people's privacy intact.
Government Responsibilities
First, the government needs to be open about how much such surveillance they carry out on citizens. Without transparency there cannot be accountability. The government also has to be transparent because people have the right to know when and how much they're being watched. Second, the government needs to put laws in place with the power to limit the use of contracts of adhesion, protect victims of things like revenge porn, and proper persecute those who violate others' privacy. This is an ongoing battle, and there's no telling how long It will take for the government to step up to the plate. This is why it's vital that we, as internet users, protect ourselves as best we can.
Keeping Yourself Safe on the Internet
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has some tips for protecting your privacy online. The main thing users have to do is limit the amount of information they're giving out. This video from FTC shows just how much information the average person gives out on a daily basis.
Sharing Information: A Day in Your Life from Federal Trade Commission on Vimeo.
The second thing you can do is learn more about online tracking and change your browser settings. Every browser has a section in their settings, usually called "Privacy," under which you can limit how much websites track you and delete cookies. Cookies are files placed on your computer by websites. They are used by the websites to enhance a user's experience. By deleting cookies, you keep websites from studying you in order to learn your preferences. Other ways to increase your privacy online include:
- Using privacy browsers like DuckDuckGo
- Browsing using only private or incognito tabs
- Opting out of personalized advertising
- More
The subject of online privacy is a concerning one, and keeping yourself safe can seem tedious. It is easier to just use default settings and click "I Agree" without reading lengthy contracts, but safety always comes first. The extra work is definitely worth it, and learning about these issues brings us closer to solving them.
No comments:
Post a Comment