Privacy

Now that we are living in a digital society, it is important for us to understand if we even have control over our own privacy and confidentiality. New media has definitely revolutionized the way that we look at our privacy. It is completely different from even how we evaluated privacy 10 years ago. The fourth amendment to the Constitution protects the privacy of ourselves, our homes and our belongings. The internet was not around when this document was written, so are we protected on the internet? 

“We are fast approaching a privacy crisis in the United States. Google, Facebook and other big Internet companies collect information about us, which they deploy in the service of advertisers” (Nocera). Big companies are taking our information from these new media sites and selling them to other companies to make more money and just increase the flow of information. Since there are no rules and regulations regarding new media applications, no one truly knows what is right from wrong. Also, since information in the digital age is easily accessible, obtaining any type of information is relatively quick and easy. This NYTimes article was written years before Facebook giving Data Analytica user information, but the author of this article foreshadowed that the USA is approaching a privacy crisis, which we are currently in now. 

“Equally importantly, we often convolve privacy and security without considering their differences. One needs security to protect private information, but one can have security without privacy, as many world events have shown” (Reed). Posting online impacts your privacy in more ways than one. Once something is online, it is almost impossible to delete it and limit the damage it may cause. For example, I read this article when a young couple went on vacation and were posting their vacation photos. When they returned home, they realized that they were robbed. The robbers knew they were not home, and it was the opportune moment. You really do need to be careful of what and when you post on social media. In this case, they shared their location and led to negative events that were out of their control following up. When talking about privacy, there are many more questions than answers. 

In conclusion, new media has greatly changed the way that we evaluate our privacy and confidentiality in society, for the worst. 

Citations:

Nocera, Joe. “'The Wild West of Privacy'.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 25 Feb. 2014, www.nytimes.com/2014/02/25/opinion/nocera-the-wild-west-of-privacy.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=1.

Reed, Daniel. “Information Privacy: Changing Norms and Expectations.” ACM, 11 May 2011, www.cacm.acm.org/blogs/blog-cacm/108232-information-privacy-changing-norms-and-expectations/fulltext.

Image: https://securitygladiators.com/5-online-privacy-techniques/