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#eprivacy. There is a growing movement to protect and secure individual's online identity. For me, this is a choice topic. The benefits of social media and digital communication are tremendous for both business and personal use. However, I am concerned that users are unaware of the value that both businesses and hackers place on the information they are providing. Additionally, I am apprehensive for a future devoid of private thoughts.
Tracy Mitrano of Cornell University eloquently expressed that “Technology does indeed create new social norms” (Mitrano, 2006, para. 13). While technology does foster and encourage new behaviors (that are both positive and negative), it is becoming more and more important for individuals to be mindful of their interactions online and how that interaction could be interpreted or manipulated. For example, a variety of retail stores offer mobile payment apps, including Chipotle and Starbucks. On the surface, this is a transparent and consumer friendly application, yet individuals should be aware of how companies can utilize this data (tracking the products purchased, locations, and the amount etc.). Joel Mathis analyzes the possibilities for the future of mobile payments, describing how customers receive coupons and other incentives based on their mobile payment usage (Mathis, 2014). Personally, I don't need a record, and I don't need a store to have a record, of the number of burrito bowls that I have consumed. Consequently, my main concern for online privacy and security is the vast amount of information that is shared and collected instantaneously.
Tracy Mitrano of Cornell University eloquently expressed that “Technology does indeed create new social norms” (Mitrano, 2006, para. 13). While technology does foster and encourage new behaviors (that are both positive and negative), it is becoming more and more important for individuals to be mindful of their interactions online and how that interaction could be interpreted or manipulated. For example, a variety of retail stores offer mobile payment apps, including Chipotle and Starbucks. On the surface, this is a transparent and consumer friendly application, yet individuals should be aware of how companies can utilize this data (tracking the products purchased, locations, and the amount etc.). Joel Mathis analyzes the possibilities for the future of mobile payments, describing how customers receive coupons and other incentives based on their mobile payment usage (Mathis, 2014). Personally, I don't need a record, and I don't need a store to have a record, of the number of burrito bowls that I have consumed. Consequently, my main concern for online privacy and security is the vast amount of information that is shared and collected instantaneously.
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The growing fear has not discouraged me from using multiple online
platforms. Of course, there are certain platforms that I choose to not use, including SnapChat (this probably has more to do with my age). I have a strong feeling that the content shared on SnapChat is not permanently deleted
after it is viewed. Recently, this has become an issue for the company. In 2013,
SnapChat reportedly “released a database of 4.6 million Snapchat users and
their phone numbers. The leak, a particularly embarrassing transgression for a
company whose image is partly grounded in the promise of privacy” (Foster &
Jackson, 2014). If you have a chance, this is a very interesting read in The New
Yorker, Anatomy of a Snap Attack.
Admittedly, I am skeptical of social and digital media for personal use. I prefer to engage my community of friends and family off-line, in a more personal setting. However, I am a strong proponent for businesses to participate, engage, and connect with its community via social media. There are tremendous opportunities for businesses to solve problems, build brands, and create engaging communities. That being said, we as individuals should be aware of the materials that we are posting and the individuals that we are engaging with online.
References
Foster, R., & Jackson, B. (2014, Januar 9). Anatomy of a snap attack. The New Yorker. Retrieved from: http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/anatomy-of-a-snap-attack
Mathis, J. (2014, February 25). Why 2014 could be the year mobile payments explode on the iPhone. Macworld. Retrieved from: http://www.macworld.com/article/2101300/why-2014-could-be-the-year-mobile-payments-explode-on-the-iphone.html
Mitrano, T. (2006, January 1). A wider world:Youth, privacy, and social networking technologies. EDUCAUSEREVIEW. Retrieved from:http://www.educause.edu/ero/article/wider-world-youth-privacy-and-social-networking-technologies
Siciliano, R. (2011, July 13). 15 social media security tips. McAfee. Retrieved from: https://blogs.mcafee.com/consumer/15-social-media-security-tips
Catherine,
ReplyDeleteI think we our group is interestingly alike with our team consisting of all conservative social media users. The information shared in our blogs and readings has been very enlightening, but it does leave me even more concerned about privacy issues. I just don’t think at this point we can estimate just how much of ourselves we are giving away.
For instance, this blog is about our social media privacy concerns. For a team filled with privacy conscious peers, all of us taking great care to limit what we share and how we share it, having to share it is beyond our social media normal usage. From an academic perspective, every word we write is mined to prevent plagiarism – and that is a great thing. However, what else will that data ultimately be used for? We provide our college with information and we really have no control over what happens to it once we submit it. For all we know it may be used for academic research in the future.
“Using social media for academic research is accelerating and raising ethical concerns along the way, as vast amounts of information collected by private companies — including Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Twitter — are giving new insight into all aspects of everyday life” (Jayson, 2014).
Have you given any thought to all of the documents we’ve produced, submitted, and posted? Do you have any privacy concerns with our academic papers?
Kim
Reference
Jayson, S. (2014, March 12). Social media research raises privacy and ethics issues. Retrieved February 25, 2015, from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/03/08/data-online-behavior-research/5781447/
Great question, Kim! Honestly, I have not given it too much thought, but I suppose my main concern or question would be, who is reading these post and comments? It was great to see Adam Folker comment on your blog last session, but it was also alarming for me. What if I said something that was not flattering for Folker or misquoted him?
DeleteNow that I am considering this, I think I have been more sensitive or cautious about who or what I write about, given the public nature of these forums. I wonder, has anyone else in our group crafted what they wrote as to not offend anyone? Would our conversations be different if we were writing in the private, safe, and secure bubble of iLearn?
Catherine,
DeleteI think there is definitely a screen that goes up when writing a public blog. To be successful, one needs to be authentic certainly. However, given the reach of this blog, and the purpose being to further our education, I do feel like everyone is being "web-polite." That's not a bad thing, but it does lack a certain authenticity that iLearn posts seem to have.
I am sorry that Adam Folker responding alarmed you! I thought it was great and exciting to see just how far this blog can reach!
Kim
Oh! No, I thought it was great that Adam Folker responded - I just realized how public these forums are. No need for apologies!
DeleteI agree with you, I think it's a good thing that people are being sensitive and polite online.
Catherine,
ReplyDeleteI 100% agree this is a choice topic. However the everyday world demands the use of social media now, and those that don’t jump on board are left behind professional and now even personally, and socially. The standard expectation is that everyone should be using Facebook and Twitter, and if not they are looked at with a strange curiosity. Chaudhuri explains that "there's a certain social image one needs to maintain. Today's generation lives more in the virtual than real world, almost to a point of addiction.” People can be obsessed and more interested in their social status and online persona more than they are about the own real life. At what point will it become too much, or has it reached that point already, when will we get back to reality? I think that common sense has to come into play with dealing with online interactive forums, however for those new to social media their standards of common sense can even go out the window. I agree with you that we should be mindful of our interactions and try to perceive our online activities from the perspective of others before posting pictures or leaving comments. I also agree with being conscious of the about of personal identifiable information we have out there, whether it be as you mentioned with regards to coupons or shopping habits, all these little pieces of information add up very substantially to a person looking to misuse it. Great example of SnapChat, I also don’t use it. But for those people that do use it, and use it believing all data is permanently deleted, therefore have no filter on what the share, I would be concerned. No online interaction is permanently erasable, there is always some system to trace, track, retain, collect etc. “If it is on the internet, it is not private.” (IKeepSafe) Although there are many possible privacy situations that do revolve around social media, I choose to use it and have not been so discouraged. However, I try to maintain my privacy settings as best as I remember, and take care to be mindful of the information I can sharing. Although I take these precautions I do think that if someone really decided to target my accounts in a negative way, then there really is no stopping them. With every new technological advance, there is a security system that partners it, but there is also someone who quickly learns how to dismantle such procedures, and so that appears to be the pattern of our advancing technology.
Kelly Apfel
References
Chaudhuri, Nupur, 2012. The Times of India, Social Networking is the New Peer Pressure
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/relationships/man-woman/Social-networking-is-the-new-peer-pressure/articleshow/16336998.cms
IKeepSafe Blog, 2013
http://www.ikeepsafe.org/socialnetworking/if-it-is-on-the-internet-its-not-private/
Kelly, I think you are absolutely correct; I really enjoyed discussing this topic. Perhaps the best means to securing our information and identity online is understanding that what is posted is no longer private. Once individuals realize this, maybe it will help guide their decisions about what to share vs. what not to share. Hopefully, younger generations learn this lesson sooner rather than later.
DeleteThis is a very interesting article to consider: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/mar/01/nobody-cares-about-online-privacy-malcolm-rifkind