Ubiquitious Computing and Your Privacy
Ubiquitous Computing and Your Privacy
INF 103 Week 3 Discussion 1
Cite and explain examples that support and argue against the statement made by Scott McNealy, founder of Sun Microsystems, “You have zero privacy anyway. Get over it.” Personally, there are several reasons why I do not engage in any of the social networks like Facebook, Twitter, My Space, etc. The most important reason to me is the privacy issue. Although I do not have anything to hide, I am not comfortable knowing that there may be many people looking at my entries, pictures, history, or information. When I look at the argument of McNealy’s statement, there are several quotes that weigh against limited privacy on the social networks. Although there are privacy settings, as a general rule it is good to remember that if you post something on Facebook, there are no secrets. (Bowles, 2010) There was also an issue with privacy when the Google’s new social networking site called Buzz shared the user’s email addresses with everyone else on without asking permission. This example highlights the fact that none of us can be confident that we are aware of all the privacy issues that exist. With new social media and ways to use computers and with link information being developed every day, there is a corresponding privacy threat that emerges with all of them. The best defense is knowledge and vigilance. (Bowles, 2010) The amount of data collected about you is staggering. You leave a digital fingerprint every time you use your credit card, borrow a library book, go to the doctor, rent a movie, bank online, apply for a job, email, blog, use Facebook, and so on. You are aware of some of this information….it is intended to be public. But other information is extremely private, such as your bank account log-in code, and therefore the unauthorized access of personal information is a serious threat. (Bowles, 2010) There are also things you can do to give you limited privacy while using social
INF 103 Week 3 Discussion 1
Cite and explain examples that support and argue against the statement made by Scott McNealy, founder of Sun Microsystems, “You have zero privacy anyway. Get over it.” Personally, there are several reasons why I do not engage in any of the social networks like Facebook, Twitter, My Space, etc. The most important reason to me is the privacy issue. Although I do not have anything to hide, I am not comfortable knowing that there may be many people looking at my entries, pictures, history, or information. When I look at the argument of McNealy’s statement, there are several quotes that weigh against limited privacy on the social networks. Although there are privacy settings, as a general rule it is good to remember that if you post something on Facebook, there are no secrets. (Bowles, 2010) There was also an issue with privacy when the Google’s new social networking site called Buzz shared the user’s email addresses with everyone else on without asking permission. This example highlights the fact that none of us can be confident that we are aware of all the privacy issues that exist. With new social media and ways to use computers and with link information being developed every day, there is a corresponding privacy threat that emerges with all of them. The best defense is knowledge and vigilance. (Bowles, 2010) The amount of data collected about you is staggering. You leave a digital fingerprint every time you use your credit card, borrow a library book, go to the doctor, rent a movie, bank online, apply for a job, email, blog, use Facebook, and so on. You are aware of some of this information….it is intended to be public. But other information is extremely private, such as your bank account log-in code, and therefore the unauthorized access of personal information is a serious threat. (Bowles, 2010) There are also things you can do to give you limited privacy while using social