Designing Globally for Smartphones: Part 2
Navigating the complex waters of data consumption, government policies and user privacy
2018 (and 2017, 2016, 2015, etc) has seen a sweep of privacy policy updates throughout Western countries. But part of designing globally means focusing not only on these policies, but also on on data usage and government censorship of digital products. Governments and companies handle not only your personal data, but your cellular data too, in very considered — and very unconsidered — ways.
If you’d like to take some steps back and get an understanding of the device landscape overall, you can check out the first article from July about devices and operating systems.
1. Not All Data Is Created Equal
In America, and in many other countries around the world, unlimited data for a set price is a given. It’s a baseline standard provided by most major carriers. However, this isn’t the case everywhere — especially in countries where the cost of large amounts of data are more than most people can afford. For tourists, the situation is much different. In places like Thailand, Malaysia, India and Indonesia, SIM cards with 6GB of data cost no more than $10 USD. Not only is that data available on a phone, but tethering capabilities extend that usage to other devices when needed.
As mentioned in part one of this series, a single handset can be used by multiple members of the same household in each of the aforementioned countries. So even if 6GB might last a single tourist for a while, when that amount is shared between 2, 3, 5 or 7 people everyone becomes much, much more conscious about how and why it’s getting used.
That’s why, as a user, apps like WhatsApp, FB Messenger and Viber offering use with no charge to data is an excellent way to stay in touch with those around you, but not be forced into spending more of your data allowance than you’re comfortable with. As a designer, it helps to keep real world constraints, considerations and concerns in the forefront of your mind during the design process. They might impact how users think about data, often on a daily basis.
Design tip: provide clear UI controls that allow users to dictate how often an app updates in the background or downloads content automatically. Rapid data consumption hides in smallest of places. And when downloading videos or considering server pings for large quantities of content, be transparent about how much data is required for that material.
2. The Wild West of International Internet Law
Back in September 2016, I had a 18 hour layover in Moscow. I chose to stay in their airport hotel, the same one Edward Snowden lived in for 40 days in 2013, since the convenience and cost of staying outweighed a visa and commute times to the city center. They had wifi, I had what I needed for the overnight, all would be fine.
Turned out not all was fine and I was miserably bored for a majority of those 18 hours.
Government censorship in Russia blocked a vast majority of social networks and most English language websites that I could think to access through my phone. I’d received a semi-watered down experience of Facebook where no links to content shared from friends actually took me anywhere. Browsers didn’t work well, or simply at all. Needless to say —slow airport wifi speeds aside — this was a prime example of government internet censorship.
It’s not just Russia though. There are varying levels of government internet censorship in Russia, China, South Korea, Indonesia and Morocco. From Russia closing off access to much of the web, to South Korea severely limiting all access to Google digital products (ie: Maps blatantly doesn’t work), to Morocco closing off VOIP capabilities and forcing individuals to work through VPNs near constantly. As a tourist and temporary visitor to these places, sure. It’s annoying and an inconvenience at worst. If I were a local citizen and permanent resident? That brings an entirely different set of perspectives to the table.
The Russian equivalent of Facebook is a service called Vkontake. In South Korea, residents use Naver Maps or Kakao Maps to get around the way many other places use Google Maps. In Morocco, the local equivalent of Uber is a Careem, a service that dominates much of the Arab speaking world. In Indonesia, specifically Bali, where Uber is banned and drivers are literally beaten and threatened for encroaching on taxi driver’s territories, local services like Go Jek and Blue Bird Taxi and Grab offer up some valid alternatives.
Design tip: when designing, strategizing or improving on a product that touches multiple international markets, consider potential government laws that might override opportunities you’re working on building. Audit local alternatives to your users, find out what they do well and what’s culturally acceptable within that region (such as color usage, symbol and icon meanings, etc). It’ll serve as a great way to make educated product decisions.
3. Privacy, Security, Encryption, Over and Over Again
Earlier in 2018, the EU implemented the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). It was technically adopted in early 2016, but didn’t have an implementation deadline until about 2 years later. If you vaguely remember a flurry of privacy and T&C update emails arriving in your inbox at some point a few months ago, this is why. For a pretty good read of the law, refer to this Wired article giving you everything you need to know.
What it basically meant was that privacy policies and user protections had been updated from a dial-up era 1995 law to something more appropriate for the 21st century. And since a majority of large corporations in the US have European users, and European corporations have American users, everyone updated their policies right around deadline time. Hence, email flurry.
The world is more connected now than it’s ever been before. On one hand this is great for the transfer of ideas, and on the other hand not so great for ensuring the security of personal information. GDPR was great for establishing some ground principles that forced better security measures and appropriate corporate penalties, but it’s also only just the beginning of what has to be done.
Just earlier this year I got an email from Careem, the Uber-like service I had used in Morocco for a month, that my data had been breached. But what they had told me was that my data was breached months before letting me know, and that everything was fine and their security systems had been improved. Color me skeptical. After the quantity of data breaches in just the last year alone, from everyone large and small, recognizing a user’s heightened sensitivities will go a long way in building trust.
Design tip: consider the regional and local laws governing user privacy and protections for those using your product. Often, those laws, licensing rights and regulations are much different than what we’re familiar with and it’s in everyone’s best interest to be diligent. Good starting points are reviewing country privacy policies as well as encryption laws.
