Thursday, April 8, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Privacy methods
An article in the NYTimes explains the problems with online privacy today. “Policy and privacy experts agree that the relentless use of the Internet data harvesting has overrun the old approach of using lengthy written notices to safeguard privacy. These statements are rarely read, are often confusing, and can’t hope to capture the complexity of modern data-handling practices. Daniel J. Weitzner said “There are essentially no defenders anymore of the pure notice-and-choice model. It’s no longer adequate.”
It is nearly impossible that a user can do anything online without revealing even a smidgen of personal information, such as births dates, addresses, credit card numbers or Web-browsing habits. The article explains that “enhancing online privacy is a daunting research challenge that involves not only computing, but also human behavior and perception.” It also says we need new laws and regulations. Some people have already communicated ideas to better online privacy. A group at Carnegie Mellon University is working on “privacy nudges,” where they desire to design a software that provides real times reminders such as short on-screen messages that the data you are about to send has privacy implications. “It learns, helps you and occasionally prompts you,” said one of the computer scientists. M. Ryan Calo of the Center for Internet and Society at the Stanford Law School is exploring techniques that give visceral notice to users. According to a study he has done, “Our brains are hard-wired to respond to images that look human, alive.” An example would be a digital nurse popping up in a personal health record to explain to the user the privacy implications of sharing personal information with doctors, family members, and drug companies.
First of all I do think that there is already plenty of notice on each website about the privacy implications of the information we may give away to that website. I think it is the users’ fault when they do not read the whole warning, no matter how long. I know I am definitely guilty of this. People adapted to the digital age are getting more spoiled every day. Users will not wait longer than five seconds for a website to load, and are most unlikely to glance through more than a page of their web browsing results. Therefore who in the digital age is going to want to spend as little as ten minutes reading some lame privacy details about a site they are in a dash to join?
Therefore I do think these methods of quick reminders mentioned above may become a necessity for technology. The users must be informed of what they are giving away to the website before they do so. Since so many humans work at a fast pace on technology, quick pop ups or visceral warnings may be all that is necessary to accomplish this. With proper speedy warnings of which information they can withdraw from the public, people may have more of a handle in their own online privacy.
It is nearly impossible that a user can do anything online without revealing even a smidgen of personal information, such as births dates, addresses, credit card numbers or Web-browsing habits. The article explains that “enhancing online privacy is a daunting research challenge that involves not only computing, but also human behavior and perception.” It also says we need new laws and regulations. Some people have already communicated ideas to better online privacy. A group at Carnegie Mellon University is working on “privacy nudges,” where they desire to design a software that provides real times reminders such as short on-screen messages that the data you are about to send has privacy implications. “It learns, helps you and occasionally prompts you,” said one of the computer scientists. M. Ryan Calo of the Center for Internet and Society at the Stanford Law School is exploring techniques that give visceral notice to users. According to a study he has done, “Our brains are hard-wired to respond to images that look human, alive.” An example would be a digital nurse popping up in a personal health record to explain to the user the privacy implications of sharing personal information with doctors, family members, and drug companies.
First of all I do think that there is already plenty of notice on each website about the privacy implications of the information we may give away to that website. I think it is the users’ fault when they do not read the whole warning, no matter how long. I know I am definitely guilty of this. People adapted to the digital age are getting more spoiled every day. Users will not wait longer than five seconds for a website to load, and are most unlikely to glance through more than a page of their web browsing results. Therefore who in the digital age is going to want to spend as little as ten minutes reading some lame privacy details about a site they are in a dash to join?
Therefore I do think these methods of quick reminders mentioned above may become a necessity for technology. The users must be informed of what they are giving away to the website before they do so. Since so many humans work at a fast pace on technology, quick pop ups or visceral warnings may be all that is necessary to accomplish this. With proper speedy warnings of which information they can withdraw from the public, people may have more of a handle in their own online privacy.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
