Okay, so I am going to be discussing the issue of privacy, and it is a very loaded topic.
Specifically, I am going to be discussing three different Ted Talks delivered by three people: Juan Enriquez, Catherine Crump, and Christopher Soghoian. There talks are all centered around different issues with privacy in today's society. Then, I will share my opinion on the matter.
First, Enriquez talked about "Electronic Tattoos." He explained how a person's tattoo can tell you a lot about the person... what they like, who they are, who they love, etc.. Likewise, our presence using websites such as Google, Facebook, TripAdvisor, Yelp, etc. create electronic tattoos giving these companies the same information that a regular tattoo would.
These huge companies keep all of our electronic tattoos and store loads of information about us. Enriquez cautions us to be careful what we post on social media because they will add to our tattoo. He says to watch out for silly distractions that taunt us to post inappropriate content.
Second, I listened to Catherine Crump who discussed privacy issues related to surveillance and mass location tracking.
She explained how modern technology lets the government see what goes on behind closed doors; for example, automatic license plate readers show where every American is going and who they're with. The Federal Government collects this information from police departments to keep track of where every American is located at all times.
Lastly, we have Christopher Soghoian who explained how our phones and our networks that carry calls were initially wired for surveillance.
He further notes that these surveillance systems have the ability to be hacked or tapped-into by stalkers or foreign governments.
In 2009, the Chinese government compromised Google's surveillance feature to figure out which Chinese officials were being tracked or surveilled by the service.
Okay... now comes my opinion. Brace yourself.
I.
Don't.
Care.
I don't!! Is something the matter with me?
I don't care if Google, Facebook, Yelp, etc. all have a electronic tattoos of me. If they use my information to market products towards me that I like... great!
I don't care if the Federal Government knows exactly where I am at all times. I'm not going anywhere special. I'm not doing anything wrong, so they don't care about my information, anyways. Like the video explained, they just keep the information just in case it could be useful at some point.
If my location somehow helps the government catch a bad guy some day... great!
The last video has a quote that helps to sum up my opinion on this. Soghoian says this quote after explaining his opinion that networks should be built for security:
"Yes, this means that, in the future, encryption is going to make wire-tapping more difficult. It means that the police are going to have a tougher time catching bad guys. But, the alternative would mean to live in a world where anyone's calls or text messages could be surveilled by criminals, by stalkers, and by foreign intelligence agencies."
I have the opposite point of view. I would rather the police be able to catch bad guys! I don't mind the government using my information to better catch bad people. Once again, I'm not doing anything wrong, so it's not like the government will have any use for my information except to catch a terrorist or dangerous individual.
Specifically, I am going to be discussing three different Ted Talks delivered by three people: Juan Enriquez, Catherine Crump, and Christopher Soghoian. There talks are all centered around different issues with privacy in today's society. Then, I will share my opinion on the matter.
First, Enriquez talked about "Electronic Tattoos." He explained how a person's tattoo can tell you a lot about the person... what they like, who they are, who they love, etc.. Likewise, our presence using websites such as Google, Facebook, TripAdvisor, Yelp, etc. create electronic tattoos giving these companies the same information that a regular tattoo would.
These huge companies keep all of our electronic tattoos and store loads of information about us. Enriquez cautions us to be careful what we post on social media because they will add to our tattoo. He says to watch out for silly distractions that taunt us to post inappropriate content.
Second, I listened to Catherine Crump who discussed privacy issues related to surveillance and mass location tracking.
She explained how modern technology lets the government see what goes on behind closed doors; for example, automatic license plate readers show where every American is going and who they're with. The Federal Government collects this information from police departments to keep track of where every American is located at all times.
Lastly, we have Christopher Soghoian who explained how our phones and our networks that carry calls were initially wired for surveillance.
He further notes that these surveillance systems have the ability to be hacked or tapped-into by stalkers or foreign governments.
In 2009, the Chinese government compromised Google's surveillance feature to figure out which Chinese officials were being tracked or surveilled by the service.
Okay... now comes my opinion. Brace yourself.
I.
Don't.
Care.
I don't!! Is something the matter with me?
I don't care if Google, Facebook, Yelp, etc. all have a electronic tattoos of me. If they use my information to market products towards me that I like... great!
I don't care if the Federal Government knows exactly where I am at all times. I'm not going anywhere special. I'm not doing anything wrong, so they don't care about my information, anyways. Like the video explained, they just keep the information just in case it could be useful at some point.
If my location somehow helps the government catch a bad guy some day... great!
The last video has a quote that helps to sum up my opinion on this. Soghoian says this quote after explaining his opinion that networks should be built for security:
"Yes, this means that, in the future, encryption is going to make wire-tapping more difficult. It means that the police are going to have a tougher time catching bad guys. But, the alternative would mean to live in a world where anyone's calls or text messages could be surveilled by criminals, by stalkers, and by foreign intelligence agencies."
 |
| Christopher Soghoian stating his opinions on privacy. |
I have the opposite point of view. I would rather the police be able to catch bad guys! I don't mind the government using my information to better catch bad people. Once again, I'm not doing anything wrong, so it's not like the government will have any use for my information except to catch a terrorist or dangerous individual.
The only argument that bothers me a little is the notion that a stalker could tap into this information and use it to stalk me and hurt me. But, I would just rather take that chance than make it harder for police and the government to catch the bad people that need to be caught.
Like I said, it's an unpopular opinion. Maybe I am crazy, but I just don't care if the government, if Google, if Facebook, knows everything there is to know about me. I guess I'm just an open book.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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