Privacy

 

 

 

This week's videos got me thinking about how little privacy we really have these days. The one that caught my attention the most was Juan Enriquez's discussion on "electronic tattoos." This analogy really captures social media and all we do online. Many people upload things without considering that they might still be viewed years from now. I am aware that I probably wouldn't want everyone to view some of my older social media posts, especially those from when I was young.

The video about the My Friend Cayla doll also caught me off guard. This demonstrated that our devices can cause privacy issues in unexpected places, despite the fact that most parents undoubtedly feel toys are safe. I have also read about children talking to strangers through home devices like Google Home or Alexa that have been hacked and accessed by nefarious individuals. This further highlights how important it is to keep a watchful eye on every device that is capable of connecting to the internet. 

Catherine Crump’s talk about the police tracking footage was also fascinating. I was unaware that so many drivers' personal information was being gathered by license plate readers. I can see why police use them to track down suspects or stolen cars, but it seems like it could be abused to store information on innocent individuals. It makes one feel like they’re always being watched these days.

To me, the most concerning video was the one that covered Darieth Chisolm's unfortunate experience of revenge porn. In no case should people’s private images be posted online without their consent. It baffles me to see how hard it was for her to get the pictures taken down, specifically the lack of protection she had by law in this case. I believe that the government should do a better job of shielding victims and holding offenders accountable.

After watching Christopher Soghoian’s talk about encryption and surveillance, I am now aware of how vulnerable our communications can be. Pretty much everyone uses their phones on a daily basis, but we don’t often consider who could be able to access the data.  I found it intriguing that encrypted services like WhatsApp and Apple's messaging system were promoted as safer choices, since they make it more difficult for others to intercept conversations. This is comforting to me since I do use Apple’s text messaging for most of my communication. 

Since nearly everyone uses social media, smartphones, and the internet, these problems impact everyone. Every day, my friends and family use apps to chat, purchase online, and share pictures. This implies that whether we are aware of it or not, we are all disclosing personal information, without even knowing to whom. 

Stricter privacy regulations could and should be passed by the government. Businesses need to be more open and truthful about the data they get and how they use it. Crimes like revenge porn and reality-distorting deepfakes need harsher penalties.

In general, we must use strong passwords, activate two-factor authentication wherever possible, be more cautious about what we share online, and pay attention to privacy settings in order to protect ourselves. Additionally, we should reconsider granting apps access to data they don't require. Although privacy isn't specifically protected by the Constitution, these videos demonstrated why it's still vital to do so.