"Why is privacy such a contentious issue for internet users? Discuss with reference to at least ONE social network service (or other web2.0 service)".
Protecting your privacy is everything in today’s high tech modern world. From an early stage we develop a sense of ownership over ourselves and the information we put out for everyone to know and see, pretty much in the same way we limit other people use our prized material possessions. Controlling privacy helps us to stay as an individual. The way we tell people our private information can occur through many ways, such as through telephones, the internet and face to face. However, in today’s world, the importance of ones own privacy has become a significant issue that it has become a regular in the media for all the wrong reason. And since the internet boom and social networking sites, it has become more and more easier to steal people’s private information. However, has all this privacy issue and concerns been exaggerated by the media and their like to bring fear into the world, or, is it an issue that we all need to protect ourselves from? This paper will discuss on how online privacy is very much a contentious issue, yet also, how the media over exaggerates it. First off though, what is privacy and how do we define it?
There is no one simple way to answer this question as there are many different definitions to define what privacy is, and also how we interpret it as the term “privacy” can have different meaning through cultural and social contexts and personal beliefs, for example, in Muslim communities and countries, Muslim women are told to keep their arms and legs covered as it’s a private part of your body that only your husband and family should see, while here in Australia and other western countries, most women feel that covering your arms and legs is not a private matter. However, what most people can all agree on is that privacy, as stated by Alan Westin, is “the right of individuals, groups and institutions to determine for themselves, when, how and to what extent information about them is communicated to others” (Media Awareness Network 2010) such as personal data and information. Though, why is privacy important to us and how has it become such a contentious issue?
Again, there are many different reasons to why privacy is important us, usually though it’s because of our fundamental rights as a human being in order to protect our personal and private information from unwanted people, such as pedophilias, criminals, and sometimes, even our own friends. “Privacy isn’t just about hiding things. It’s about self–possession, autonomy, and integrity” (FirstMonday.org 2006). Another reason is simply because no one needs to know any personal information about you other than you. But why is it such a contentious issue? Well, it’s because we now live in a digital age world were our everyday lives are run by computers, mobile phones and the internet. It is so easy these days to now “take” someone’s personal information and share it for the whole world to see. In particular with the internet, where many are unaware that when they go online, they leave an electronic record of their movements, and this in turn, can unwittingly provide personal details to people and organizations that can track such data.
Since the mid 90’s, we have seen a massive growth within internet usage, almost to the point where 1.9 billion people now use the internet (Internet World Stats 2010) and about 37% of that internet population do not understand anything about privacy (Wired 2010). Furthermore, a majority of that 37% is made up of young kids and teenagers.
This is especially a big concern when we’re dealing privacy issue with young kids and teenagers mixed together as they yet have not grasp the concept of privacy. We often here stories of them in the media doing unthinkable things, such as sending sexual images of themselves or of other people on the internet that then going viral, or giving out account details or even meeting up with ‘suppose’ friends they’ve just meet off social networking sites that usually end in tragedy. An example of this issue happen just a couple of months ago.
In May 2010, Nona Belomesoff, an 18 year old teenage girl, was murdered and dumped in a near by bush land in Sydney’s southwest after she allegedly went to meet two men who had befriended her on the social networking site Facebook (ABC 2010). One of the men, 20-year-old Christopher James Dannveig, created a fake Facebook profile where he had pretended to be animal rescue worker “Jason Green”, recorded her private personal details such as “her home address, phone numbers, and pictures” (ABC 2010) and then lured Miss Belomesoff to an isolated area where he raped and murdered her (ABC 2010). This is very frightening since majority of teenagers spend most amount of their free time on social networking sites. “Teenagers will freely give up personal information on social networks on the Internet. Yet, they are angered when their parents read their private journals” (FirstMonday.org 2006). Social networking sites are the main concerns with privacy issues as your personal details are accessible to anyone, even companies “who buy your personal information from social networking sites in order to market certain information to you, all without your knowledge and consent” (FirstMonday.org 2006).
Many believe that their Facebook, Twitter or MySpace journal entries are private and very much theirs, but are actually public diaries that are owned by companies who store all your information, including photos, videos and phone numbers in a computer database. For example, Facebook, who clearly state in their Terms and Conditions that they “keep track of all the actions you take on Facebook, such as adding connections (including joining a group or adding a friend), creating a photo album, sending a gift, poking another user, indicating you “like” a post, attending an event, or connecting with an application. In some cases you are also taking an action when you provide information or content to us. For example, if you share a video, in addition to storing the actual content you uploaded, we will log the fact that you shared it” (Facebook 2010). We live in a paradoxical world of privacy where on one hand people reveal their most intimate details, thoughts and behaviors online, yet on the other, companies are selling our information to government agencies, companies and marketers. For instances, governments buy your information and use social networking sites to “detect fraud, fake marriages and immigration fraud” (The Huffington Post 2010). However, majority of these privacy concerns are over exaggerated by the media.
The media often over exaggerate these privacy fears by claiming how we now live in a “big brother” styled world where cameras are watching our every movements. “Privacy concerns are overblown. No company or government agency will be able to secretly scan your house, or find out what products you've purchased or even what you’re doing or who you’re talking to online. There is no feasible way to do so. If the Government could then wouldn’t all these terrorist, pedophilia and other bad people be off the street and in jail by now?” claims Jay Cline (Computerworld 2003). The media has a tendency to exaggerate things, privacy concerns being at the top, in order to bring fear into the world. “All these fears about Facebook and its privacy are all overblown and half of what’s said has been exaggerated by the media” states Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg (All Facebook 2010). The media has two goals in mind, one, bring fear and second, make money. However, online privacy concerns are very much a contentious issue, and will always be no matter how exaggerated the media has made it out.
We live in a new digital world where everyone, including young kids and teenager, are confining their most private and intimate matters on the internet for everyone to see. Furthermore, companies such as Facebook are selling your personal information to government agencies and marketers with out your knowledge or consent. Even though privacy is not a new issue, it has become a bigger problem than ever before now that our lives are run by new communication technologies. We, as individuals, need to be more vigilant and proactive about protecting our privacy on the internet as what we traditional viewed or understood privacy as no longer exists, so we must now adapt our thinking and attitudes accordingly to cope with this dangerous technology.
References
ABC (2010) Facebook Teen Killed
Retrieved at: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/05/17/2901537.htm
(Online), 19th October 2010
All Facebook (2010) U.S. Government Using Facebook For Surveillance
Retrieved at: http://www.allfacebook.com/facebook-government-surveillance-2010-10 (Online), 19th October 2010
Computerworld (2003) Privacy Scare Is Overblown
Retrieved at: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/87286/RFID_privacy_scare_is_overblown
(Online), 20th October 2010
Facebook (2010) Facebook’s Privacy Policy
Retrieved at: http://www.facebook.com/policy.php
(Online), 22nd October 2010
FirstMonday.org (2006) A Privacy Paradox
Retrieved at: http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/viewArticle/1394/1312%23note4 (Online), 18th October 2010
Internet World Stats (2010) Internet Usage Statistics
Retrieved at: http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm
(Online), 20th October 2010
Retrieved at: http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/issues/privacy/compromised_privacy.cfm
(Online), 18th October 2010
The Huffington Post (2010) U.S. Government Exploits Our Facebook 'Narcissism' To Detect Fraud, Fake Marriages
Retrieved at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/14/government-facebook_n_762581.html (Online), 22nd October 2010
Wired (2010) Facebook’s Gone Rogue; It’s Time for an Open Alternative
Retrieved at: http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2010/05/facebook-rogue/
(Online), 21st October 2010
Further References
Broadband Genie (2010) Big Brother Really Is Watching You Online
Retrieved at: http://www.broadbandgenie.co.uk/news/20101020-big-brother-really-watching-online-will-latest-government-plans (Online), 20th October 2010
Clare Champion (2010) We Need To Protect Our Right To Privacy
Retrieved at: http://www.clarechampion.ie/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3808:we-need-to-protect-our-right-to-privacy&catid=80:comment&Itemid=60 (Online), 17th October 2010
Cryptography (2002) Big Brother and Another Overblown Privacy Scare
Retrieved at: http://www.mail-archive.com/cryptography@wasabisystems.com/msg03229.html(Online), 18th October 2010
Cyberlaw (2010) Privacy Concerns – Are Social Networking Sites All To Blame?
Retrieved at: http://cyberlaw.org.au/2010/05/16/privacy-concerns-are-social-networking-sites-all-to-blame/ (Online), 21st October 2010
Harleyc (2005) Summary of James Rachels’ "Why Privacy Is Important"
Retrieved at: http://www.harleyc.com/duotang/docs/WhyPrivacyIsImportant.pdf
(Online), 18th October 2010
Jahne (2010) Social Networking Vs. Privacy
Retrieved at: http://www.jahne.com/information-and-removal/social-networking-vs-privacy/ (Online), 19th October 2010
NCBI (1999) Concerns About Privacy In Research May Be Exaggerated
Retrieved at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1116554/
(Online), 22nd October 2010
Privacy In Social Network Sites (2008) Privacy Risks For Users Of Social Network Sites
Retrieved at: http://privacyinsocialnetworksites.wordpress.com/
(Online), 21st October 2010
Sports Techy (2010) Facebook Embroiled In New Privacy Scare
Retrieved at: http://sports.tmcnet.com/news/2010/10/18/5075462.htm
(Online), 18th October 2010
TechYoYo (2010) Internet History Tracker – Bye Bye Privacy
Retrieved at: http://techyoyo.com/2010/02/internet-history-tracker-bye-bye-privacy/
(Online), 17th October 2010
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