TAKEAWAYS FOR WEEK TWO

• In class and in the readings, we learned about the "Nothing to Hide" argument
• The argument says that law-abiding citizens have nothing to hide, so should not protest government surveilance
• This argument does not hold up to intense scrutiny:
• Just because I have "Nothing to Hide" (I have done nothing illegal) doesn't mean I have anything I want to show you
• Surveilance creates a "chilling effect" because people behave differently when they know they are being watched. This stifles creativity and innovation
• Constant government surveillance is a requirement of a police state. Social dissidents need some privacy to operate to avoid being targeted by an overreaching government.
• Aggregated meta-information, such as phone numbers dialed and total value of online purchases, could reveal more sensitive information, so even high-level dragnet surveillance of all citizens should be a concern.
• As we saw in the TED talk, even information people publicly reveal about themselves can be aggregated to astonishing results!
• We had a vibrant discussion about the question of the week
• Some students that privacy was contextual:
• Privacy interests of an individual may differ from the privacy interests of a corporation
• Leaders (of government, corporations, etc.) should allow some degree of transparency to generate trust and prove they are acting in the interest of the group they claim to represent
• In some cases, an individual's privacy rights are subservient to the greater good
• The justice system allows lawsuits to be filed under a pseudonym, provided the need can be justified
• We got into a discussion about anonymity
• Knowing a speaker's identity is important to establish the credibility of information presented
• Posting anonymously on the Internet could protect someone from future enemies using their words against them. Since the Internet never forgets, the only protection is to ensure your identity cannot be connected to damaging thoughts (Related Comic - be sure to mouse over the image)
• The pressure is on our anonymous classmate to talk to Professor Dryer about why they prefers to remain anonymous (or not)!
• Many students talked about privacy in context of disclosure and access to personal information. But are there other facets?
• Information once revealed cannot be retracted. If friends turn into enemies, one could find oneself being blackmailed or having private photos posted on the internet as a form of revenge
• So, the way information is used is important to privacy