Do Not Disturb: The Internet and Privacy Concerns
Let me ask you a kind of silly question.
Have you ever sat in front of your computer and thought to yourself “What is a computer?”, or “What is the internet?”, or “How does all of this even work?!?”
If you have, don’t worry, I ask myself these questions often.
Most people have been graciously spared from the deep intricacies and complexity of the inter-workings of the invisible thread that connects us all: the Internet (!).
This article will explain (at a high level) what the Internet is, how it differs from the World Wide Web, and then provide some thoughts on how complicated and tricky privacy is.
The Internet ≠ World Wide Web
The backbone of the Internet was first developed as a way to securely transmit information between a handful of computers in case of a nuclear strike (it was named ARPANET). It was later adapted for use between several universities.
This technology transformed the way people transferred information — no longer having to rely on reels of tape or punch cards.
“The Internet” as we know it can be boiled down to a large network that connects devices using servers, computers and other components. It is the tie that links your iPhone, your laptop and your smart TV.
The World Wide Web (or “the web”), on the other hand, is what allows us to access the Internet. It is the interface that connects us to it.
The internet and the web are often used interchangeably but are actually two different entities.
In other words: you can be “on the Internet” without being “on the web.”
For example, when you play Words With Friends with your mom, your phone relies on the Internet to store your game data on servers.
However, when you do a Google search on your phone through the Safari app you are using the web to access the Internet.
It is an important distinction. It helps us understand the phrase the “Internet of Things” that has recently gained popularity.
Internet of Things (IoT)
The Internet of Things refers to fact that many devices can connect to each other. You have your smart TV’s, your smart refrigerators, your smartphones — and likely they can all talk and transfer data.
In this context, “smart” refers to the ability to connect to the Internet — and more importantly, collect and transmit data about the item.
This fully developed network provides users with much control over their day-to-day actions — being able to change the temperature in their home while they are at work, for example. This control feels good.
Our demand for greater control over our lives leads to more development of these products and with it grows the amount of data being collected about our lives.
As more people become connected to and dependent on the Internet, the amount of data collected only continues to grow. Every time you send your friend a Snapchat or create a new document on Google docs, you are creating more data.
In fact, 2.3 trillion gigabytes of new data is created every day (DeMars, 2018).
This amount of data creation makes sense given that in 2018 over 98% of U.S. young adults (ages 18–29) used the Internet.
All of this data exists — and yet, it is mostly invisible to us. We do not see the massive server rooms that store our data. We do not see who owns our data.
Although we often feel in control because of our smart devices — in many ways it is a simulation of control.
What happened to that post you made three months ago about your sister’s birthday, right before deleting your Facebook? It lives on somewhere. What about the facial recognition software that makes Google Photos so convenient? Your face lives somewhere — and is digitally identified and connected to you.
Privacy, Privacy, Privacy
Why does it matter that your photo is linked to your name? It does make it easier to sort through your photos.
For those who have lived their entire lives in a world that is “online” (myself included), this question can be a hard one to answer. Digital natives are those who have lived most to all of their lives connected.
For those who are “digital immigrants,” it is often easy to see concerns about providing intimate details of your life on the Internet.
However, the temptation to post pictures frequently of kids, grandchildren or vacations is real. Receiving feedback from friends is reason enough to put fears of privacy issues aside.
For digital natives (myself included) the idea that someone bad would want to use my middle school Facebook photos is hard to wrap my head around.
This is a reality that I had to come to terms with, however. I got a Facebook when I was in eighth grade — and started posting regularly.
Even if these status updates appear to be innocent — they provided details about my life, my location, my emotions that were then readily available for anyone to (mis)use.
Imagine how this maps onto the social media platforms that are popular today. If your parents started posting photos of you from the time you were born, there is a digital “album” of exactly what you have looked like as you have grown up. Who you are is forever imprinted onto the digital sphere.
How do we teach today’s younger generations about the importance of privacy and anonymity online when there is so much pressure to document, photograph and share?
The University of Texas at Austin has created a Center for Identity that is focused on answering this question. Their mission is “to deliver the highest-quality discoveries, applications, education and outreach for excellence in identity management, privacy and security” (Center for Identity).
This outreach includes teaching parents how to raise “first-generation digital natives” that often do not think twice about using their fingerprint or face to unlock their smartphones.
The Center for Identity suggests having your children turn off the location tracking on their phone, using a web browser that does not track them and encouraging them to use a free VPN when using free Wi-Fi.
They also suggest educating yourself as a parent about the importance of managing your identity online so that you can demonstrate these behaviors to your children.
The issue of privacy is one we all must be conscious of as more of our analog lives becomes copied over to digital space.
Every time we use our Facebook login on another website or shop online we are opening the door for our data to be misused. We are leaving digital breadcrumbs about who we are offline.
It is easy to read articles like these and blame the Internet for causing these problems. Or to think that the author is trying to incite fear about new technologies.
However, this point is what brings us full circle back to the beginning of this article: the Internet is a mechanism for connecting. It is a tool, neither good nor bad. We, as users, assign a value to it.
How then do we navigate this? How do we ensure that in the future, as new “smart” technologies emerge, we use them for good? How do we make sure privacy concerns are taken seriously?
The answers to these questions are emerging as people become more aware of what goes on behind their screens both socially and technically.
References:
DeMars, T. (2018) Big data. In A.E. Grant & J. H. Meadows (Eds.), Communication Technology Update and Fundamentals (539–558). New York, NY: Routledge.
