LIVE AS IF YOU WERE TO DIE TOMORROW. LEARN AS IF YOU WERE TO LIVE FOREVER (GANDHI)
Monday, April 17, 2017
QUESTION OF THE WEEK NO. 13
Do you agree with the following statement?:
Privacy as we know it is essentially
dead and we must learn to live in a totally transparent world where every
aspect of our lives, except for our unexpressed thoughts, are an open book.
No. A lot of our information is tracked, and there is an increasing use of smart devices, however not all of our information is available to others. (They haven't invented mind reading technology yet) We willingly give our information in exchange for services, such as location to get directions, or financial information for online shopping. However, the information we give isn't public, and can be safe depending on the service's level of security. Precautions can be taken to increase privacy, such as paying in-person or using a physical map. Privacy is harder to maintain, and may become more limited with certain technology. I doubt anyone wants to be completely transparent, so as technology grows and privacy becomes a larger concern (or people become more aware of its concerns), it will need to be addressed and implemented in technology.
No. I think there are steps that people can and often should take to guard their privacy. With modern technology, it may be harder to keep certain information private, but it is often still possible. I think that as technology advances and associated privacy threats grow more and more people are going to keep seeing a growing trend of privacy advocacy. I think that if the general public starts to care more about privacy, technology companies will start to take more actions to address concerns and help protect privacy.
No. I think privacy is a very important part of our lives and that it is becoming a very popular issue today. If your whole life was public, except your thoughts, I think that it would cause a lot of problems. We have seen that people act differently when they know they are being watched. I think that living in a world with no privacy would essentially strip people of their individuality and make everyone act in a more similar way. We are already very influenced by the media and world culture, we do not need more of that.
No, I do not agree with this statement. Privacy has changed and the measures that people need to take to protect themselves have increased but privacy is not dead. We have learned many things we can do to help keep information private and also become more aware of the possible privacy threats we face everyday. Even though it might be easier to just assume everything is an open book, I think it is important for us to continue to take steps to protect ourselves.
As we have learned throughout the course of the semester, it is simply a little more difficult to keep a hold on privacy in this time, but not impossible. There are many varied ways to better maintain our individual privacy, such as using private browsers and ephemeral messaging. Of course, as new technologies continue to develop, my opinion on the nature of privacy may possibly change, but as of right now, I wouldn't exactly call privacy dead.
Yes, Privacy isn't entirely dead yet, but it's not long for this world at the current rate. For many services that we use, privacy is an opt-in condition, which means that for most users it's non-existent. We usually aren't aware when personal information is being collected, who is collecting it, and what kind of information they're collecting. This is a big problem, because privacy is slipping away, and most people don't even know it's happening. Privacy is dead in the sense that many of the services that we use (Facebook, Snapchat, Amazon, Google, etc.) don't think it's a priority, and so they don't think it should be your priority either. If the only way to protect your privacy, and maintain anonymity, is to take great pains, then for all people except the most concerned and aware, privacy is all but dead.
Sure, privacy is dead IF you don't value your privacy more than you value convenience. The decision to value convenience more highly than personal information is an easy one to make if your main motivation is the use of popular software and applications that make life easier. Do you want to be the guy with the tin foil hat? No, of course not. However, once the importance of personal information comes into focus, the course of your Internet future changes. Under these circumstances, No, you are not doomed. If you choose to use the Internet, there will be an unavoidable price you pay. But if you put forth the effort to curb the usage of particular personal information, we have demonstrated through this class that you can do so. Again, you're going to have to surrender information to access the Internet, that's how the Internet works. But I don't feel the four horsemen of the apocalypse here.
I am going to say yes, but I wouldn't say that privacy is already dead, I would say it is quickly dying. Advances in data collection and monitoring technology are making it nearly impossible to protect any personal information. There are two options, first we can resist the loss of privacy. This will require a concerted effort and will need to focus away from red herrings like TSA body scans and dashcams, an instead needs to focus on real issues like mass corporate surveillance through the internet of things and government data brokering. The second option is to continue the status quo and allow privacy to die. I think people are too lazy and uninformed to save privacy so as teh second option becomes inevitable it will be important to change the way society thinks so that we can live in a society without privacy. We can already see this trend as society as younger generations care less about privacy after growing up with Facebook and social media.
I agree with the core arguments made by Steven and Alex -- Privacy as we know it is basically dead. Perhaps there will remain some more "sophisticated consumers" such as those who have taken this class or those who have spent the time to dig into it themselves but, for the vast majority of people, if we continue on the current path I do not believe Privacy has a very long future.
Yes, for most people that is the case. There are ways to exercise come over your privacy, but most people can't out won't do that. Thus, privacy as we know it is dead.
Yes. Like Steven, Simon, and Eric said, online privacy is pretty much gone unless certain precautions (i.e. encryption, ephemeral messaging) are taken. With other aspects of privacy, however, I don't know that there is much protection. Video surveillance, facial recognition technology, and ALPR's, for example, are hard to avoid. While I think/hope that 99% of this data is NOT used for nefarious purposes, it is possible that such technology could be used to obliterate privacy as we know it. That very threat leaves privacy hanging by a thread.
No, even though it is harder now to keep one's life private it is not impossible. If one takes advantage of technologies that protect one's privacy they can still have a very private life. I don't think that there has ever been a time when the aspects of one's life, aside from their thoughts, has ever been 100 percent private. Privacy is simple invaded through different forms than it was 50 years ago. I still believe it is up to the individual to determine how private his or her life will be. If he or she decided to post everything on a public Facebook page than that will greatly limit his or her privacy, but if one uses the tools available to guard one's privacy one can still live a private life.
No. I think that is giving up. I think privacy still exists but that it's different now that technology is so prevalent. I think it is possible to enact policies to protect privacy but that this should happen as soon as technology develops and should update. It's just more work.
Yes, privacy is essentially dead. With the ever-present eyes and ears of technology it is impossible to do almost anything without your actions being recorded. I believe there is no more privacy from machines and it seems that there is only a matter of time until hackers can crack into things, making it impossible to hide information from other people as well.
No. Privacy is not dead, but - taking into account what we believe privacy entails - what it has traditionally meant will die. Our Facebook messages, our emails, and any other form of communication through computers, will have at least a chance of being compromised. As we discussed at the beginning of the semester, however, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly what privacy is - especially in legal terms - and what should or should not be protected. I believe then that privacy will acclimate to the times. Data encryption, Bitcoins, Tor, etc., already provide a means of countering the digital age's easy accessibility into our private lives; as the digital age grows and threatens our privacy, we form ways of countering those attacks. With the digital age, there is always a threat to privacy, but there was a threat to privacy before the digital age began. Journals could be stolen, people could peer through windows, etc. Those threats have been taken to a digital level. What I'm essentially trying to say is that privacy threats escalate, but so do our abilities to counter them. Because of that, privacy will never be completely dead.
Yes, I think that given the route technology is taking, with greater emphasis on openness and accessibility, that privacy will eventually be, if it isn't already, dead. More than any technological development is the shift in social conventions regarding what things people consider private information. Nude pictures, telephone numbers, our daily-goings on, these are all things that at one point would have been considered by the general public something intimate and protected by privacy. Now, all that and more is considered something acceptable to share to one degree or another, even expected information in some contexts. I can see a future where all information in one form or context is considered open information.
No. A lot of our information is tracked, and there is an increasing use of smart devices, however not all of our information is available to others. (They haven't invented mind reading technology yet) We willingly give our information in exchange for services, such as location to get directions, or financial information for online shopping. However, the information we give isn't public, and can be safe depending on the service's level of security. Precautions can be taken to increase privacy, such as paying in-person or using a physical map. Privacy is harder to maintain, and may become more limited with certain technology. I doubt anyone wants to be completely transparent, so as technology grows and privacy becomes a larger concern (or people become more aware of its concerns), it will need to be addressed and implemented in technology.
ReplyDeleteNo. I think there are steps that people can and often should take to guard their privacy. With modern technology, it may be harder to keep certain information private, but it is often still possible. I think that as technology advances and associated privacy threats grow more and more people are going to keep seeing a growing trend of privacy advocacy. I think that if the general public starts to care more about privacy, technology companies will start to take more actions to address concerns and help protect privacy.
ReplyDeleteNo. I think privacy is a very important part of our lives and that it is becoming a very popular issue today. If your whole life was public, except your thoughts, I think that it would cause a lot of problems. We have seen that people act differently when they know they are being watched. I think that living in a world with no privacy would essentially strip people of their individuality and make everyone act in a more similar way. We are already very influenced by the media and world culture, we do not need more of that.
ReplyDeleteNo, I do not agree with this statement. Privacy has changed and the measures that people need to take to protect themselves have increased but privacy is not dead. We have learned many things we can do to help keep information private and also become more aware of the possible privacy threats we face everyday. Even though it might be easier to just assume everything is an open book, I think it is important for us to continue to take steps to protect ourselves.
ReplyDeleteAs we have learned throughout the course of the semester, it is simply a little more difficult to keep a hold on privacy in this time, but not impossible. There are many varied ways to better maintain our individual privacy, such as using private browsers and ephemeral messaging. Of course, as new technologies continue to develop, my opinion on the nature of privacy may possibly change, but as of right now, I wouldn't exactly call privacy dead.
ReplyDeleteYes,
ReplyDeletePrivacy isn't entirely dead yet, but it's not long for this world at the current rate. For many services that we use, privacy is an opt-in condition, which means that for most users it's non-existent. We usually aren't aware when personal information is being collected, who is collecting it, and what kind of information they're collecting. This is a big problem, because privacy is slipping away, and most people don't even know it's happening. Privacy is dead in the sense that many of the services that we use (Facebook, Snapchat, Amazon, Google, etc.) don't think it's a priority, and so they don't think it should be your priority either. If the only way to protect your privacy, and maintain anonymity, is to take great pains, then for all people except the most concerned and aware, privacy is all but dead.
Sure, privacy is dead IF you don't value your privacy more than you value convenience. The decision to value convenience more highly than personal information is an easy one to make if your main motivation is the use of popular software and applications that make life easier. Do you want to be the guy with the tin foil hat? No, of course not. However, once the importance of personal information comes into focus, the course of your Internet future changes. Under these circumstances, No, you are not doomed. If you choose to use the Internet, there will be an unavoidable price you pay. But if you put forth the effort to curb the usage of particular personal information, we have demonstrated through this class that you can do so. Again, you're going to have to surrender information to access the Internet, that's how the Internet works. But I don't feel the four horsemen of the apocalypse here.
ReplyDeleteI am going to say yes, but I wouldn't say that privacy is already dead, I would say it is quickly dying. Advances in data collection and monitoring technology are making it nearly impossible to protect any personal information. There are two options, first we can resist the loss of privacy. This will require a concerted effort and will need to focus away from red herrings like TSA body scans and dashcams, an instead needs to focus on real issues like mass corporate surveillance through the internet of things and government data brokering. The second option is to continue the status quo and allow privacy to die. I think people are too lazy and uninformed to save privacy so as teh second option becomes inevitable it will be important to change the way society thinks so that we can live in a society without privacy. We can already see this trend as society as younger generations care less about privacy after growing up with Facebook and social media.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the core arguments made by Steven and Alex -- Privacy as we know it is basically dead. Perhaps there will remain some more "sophisticated consumers" such as those who have taken this class or those who have spent the time to dig into it themselves but, for the vast majority of people, if we continue on the current path I do not believe Privacy has a very long future.
ReplyDeleteYes, for most people that is the case. There are ways to exercise come over your privacy, but most people can't out won't do that. Thus, privacy as we know it is dead.
ReplyDeleteYes. Like Steven, Simon, and Eric said, online privacy is pretty much gone unless certain precautions (i.e. encryption, ephemeral messaging) are taken. With other aspects of privacy, however, I don't know that there is much protection. Video surveillance, facial recognition technology, and ALPR's, for example, are hard to avoid. While I think/hope that 99% of this data is NOT used for nefarious purposes, it is possible that such technology could be used to obliterate privacy as we know it. That very threat leaves privacy hanging by a thread.
ReplyDeleteNo, even though it is harder now to keep one's life private it is not impossible. If one takes advantage of technologies that protect one's privacy they can still have a very private life. I don't think that there has ever been a time when the aspects of one's life, aside from their thoughts, has ever been 100 percent private. Privacy is simple invaded through different forms than it was 50 years ago. I still believe it is up to the individual to determine how private his or her life will be. If he or she decided to post everything on a public Facebook page than that will greatly limit his or her privacy, but if one uses the tools available to guard one's privacy one can still live a private life.
ReplyDeleteNo. I think that is giving up. I think privacy still exists but that it's different now that technology is so prevalent. I think it is possible to enact policies to protect privacy but that this should happen as soon as technology develops and should update. It's just more work.
ReplyDeleteYes, privacy is essentially dead. With the ever-present eyes and ears of technology it is impossible to do almost anything without your actions being recorded. I believe there is no more privacy from machines and it seems that there is only a matter of time until hackers can crack into things, making it impossible to hide information from other people as well.
ReplyDeleteNo. Privacy is not dead, but - taking into account what we believe privacy entails - what it has traditionally meant will die. Our Facebook messages, our emails, and any other form of communication through computers, will have at least a chance of being compromised. As we discussed at the beginning of the semester, however, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly what privacy is - especially in legal terms - and what should or should not be protected. I believe then that privacy will acclimate to the times. Data encryption, Bitcoins, Tor, etc., already provide a means of countering the digital age's easy accessibility into our private lives; as the digital age grows and threatens our privacy, we form ways of countering those attacks. With the digital age, there is always a threat to privacy, but there was a threat to privacy before the digital age began. Journals could be stolen, people could peer through windows, etc. Those threats have been taken to a digital level. What I'm essentially trying to say is that privacy threats escalate, but so do our abilities to counter them. Because of that, privacy will never be completely dead.
ReplyDeleteYes, I think that given the route technology is taking, with greater emphasis on openness and accessibility, that privacy will eventually be, if it isn't already, dead. More than any technological development is the shift in social conventions regarding what things people consider private information. Nude pictures, telephone numbers, our daily-goings on, these are all things that at one point would have been considered by the general public something intimate and protected by privacy. Now, all that and more is considered something acceptable to share to one degree or another, even expected information in some contexts. I can see a future where all information in one form or context is considered open information.
ReplyDelete