Is privacy impossible in social media environments ?
Introduction 400
Defining privacy in a broad sense.
Privacy, a hot issue in the 21th century. Also seems like it’s everyone’s dream to get complete privacy;
everyone wants privacy, people kind of taken it for granted.
But what do we really want? Privacy = no security ? Or security = no privacy ?
Privacy and surveillance in a traditional definition/understanding (paradox)
Surveillance : CCTV everywhere = security (?)
“Information technology is considered a major threat to privacy because it enables pervasive surveillance,
massive databases and lightning speed distribution of information across the globe. In fact, privacy has
been one of the most enduring social issues associated with digital electronic information technologies.” –
Nissenbaum, H. (2009)
In this essay, I will first define privacy in the digital age, the paradoxical situation between privacy
and surveillance for security, especially in today’s social media content. Then, investigate from
down-top perspective – affordance of social media and technology determinism, to top-down
perspective- the big data system and database nation in today’s social media environments.
Eventually examine is privacy impossible in today’s social media world.
Defining Privacy in the Digital Age 600
Privacy is sometimes defined as an option to have secrecy. Richard Posner said that privacy is the
right of people to “conceal information about themselves that others might use to their disadvantage”
Privacy in social media content.
The value of individual privacy in the digital age ?
Defining privacy in different content, especially in the social media content
– Privacy is a messy and complex subject
– Privacy in Context: Technology, Integrity and Social Life
– And for example how teenagers sees privacy nowadays , Marwick, A. and d. boyd (2014)
“Imagined” Affordance : Technological determinism, social construction 800
DOWN-TOP?
Social media’s affordance (technological affordance): e.g
Facebook affords us to show only part of our life, we could choose what to show and what not.
(Selectively) > The private option, allows us to share certain things with only certain group of people,
check-in etc technology determinism? The interaction between human and technology
^
This part show some limited agency of people
Trace/Clue, go online = footprint?
Although you don’t have facebook or any social media, but people around will still share photos of you,
you are online no matter what.
Big Data, databases Notion (Social Medias) 900
TOP-DOWN ?
Surveillance, the public have actually no control of their personal info
> Social media is one of Big Data’s most significant sources;
^
CMS Wire reports that, according to industry experts, 90 percent of the available data in the world was
collected over just the previous two years, and what’s more, that 80% of that data comes from
“unstructured” sources, like social media .
Companies selling your info out (to gov. etc)
Some other option online that forcing you to share you info? E.g. Cookies? (Preference? )
Examples: 700
(What do we actually want?)
For example: Snowden ?
It triggered the first global debate about the individual privacy in the digital age and prompted challenges
to America’s hegemonic control over the internet.
Most of the americans prefer securities more than privacy? Eg. No Place to hide by Glenn Greenwald
What is privacy ? Do people care? Or if you can only have one do people actually prefer securities more?
Is privacy possible in social media environments ? 450
To what degree? What extent ? Conclude from above’s investagation
Seems like we have choice/have control of our own info, but after all we don’t?
Conclusion: Almost Impossible, but is this not what we actually want? 250
“Most of the americans prefer securities more than privacy?” People prefer securities rather than privacy ?
They invented the game, and get us all online, in order to track every single one of us
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