Technology and Privacy
Abstract
Maintaining the privacy of information with advanced technology has become relatively difficult. The privacy issue has raised a lot of concern among online users. This paper focuses on how the internet and computer technology is a threat to society. It also addresses how social networking platforms such as Facebook have betrayed users by sharing their information with third parties without their consent. It also looks of how the healthcare system uses electronic healthcare records which pose a threat to privacy. in this paper, the issues of privacy and how it affects the society has been addresses for the purpose of highlighting on what should be done to enhance safety.
Introduction: Technology and Privacy Concern
The widespread adoption and use of computer networking have resulted in a range of both positive and negative outcomes. The structure dynamics and social relationships within the community have significantly changed. The advent of the digital media that has overtaken traditional communication methods has brought changes in the social, political, and economic arenas. It is no question that communication has improved since the introduction of computer technology, but there has been a rising concern over the privacy of information being shared in the networks. As technological growth spreads, the more risks related to technology arise such as the invasion of privacy. A lot of information is stored and shared within the computer networks which has given rise to the emergence of online crimes known as cybercrimes (Marwick, & Boyd, 2014). When committing crime online, hackers may use computers as objects of crime or as tools of crime. When a computer is used as an object of crime, hackers tamper with the computer networks to steal or to alter the information stored online for the purpose of exploiting their target. On the other hand, when the computers are used as tools of crime, the cybercriminals use the computers as objects that facilitate them to commit crime, such as child predating and stalking (Friedewald, & Pohoryles, 2016). It is therefore clear that computer networking has introduced a generation of criminals determined to violent the freedom of privacy of information.
Social media networking is among the newest forms of communication since the introduction of advanced digital technology. People share idea and information on the social media platforms including details about their geographic location, age, educational backgrounds and a lot of other information. Some platforms such as Facebook request users to share their interests, favorite food, pets, and drinks. Almost all social media platforms have a location tag in that when they post a picture, they have an option of tagging the location where they took the particular picture from, or their current location at the time of posting. When signing up to most social media platforms, individuals are requested to provide their contact information and their email addresses which are visible to the general public unless the user opts to keep the information private. Anyone with malicious intentions such as a stalker can easily retrieve a lot of private information from an ignorant social media user. Information such as names of their favorite pets and food can be used to hack into their email addresses and sensitive information such as credit card details. A hacker can also commit identity theft using the information shared on social media and pose as the user of the account to damage their reputation and other exploitative purposes. Many celebrities have found reported to have their account hacked and the hackers post obscene pictures and also use inappropriate language which has been very damaging.
With artificial intelligence, it is possible to detect when a picture was taken and the exact location where it was taken. It, therefore, makes it very easy for a stalker to easily follow their victim and commit their intended crime. Social media platforms have consistently violated the privacy of the user but people are so oblivious of the offenses being created. One of the instances where people do not pay attention to privacy violation is with the online ads that pop up when one is using the internet. Creators of the online platforms share the information on the interests of their users to online retailers that register with the platforms. When a user is online, they receive pop-ups on ads from companies quoted as ‘things you might like’ which are customized based on the information the user gave regarding their personal interests. More often than not, a user will rush to the company profile and perhaps engage in impulse buying without question how the basis on which the ad was generated.
Facebook being the largest social media platform, has occasionally been accused of abusing user privacy. the social network has been said to have allowed other firms such as Amazon, Netflix Pandora, and Apple among others to access user data. According to BBC news, Bing which is a search engine belonging to Microsoft could see the names of friends to Facebook users without their consent. Apple was reported to have access to the date when the Facebook users registered to the platform as well as their contact details. The most surprising one was the ability of Yahoo to view live feeds of friend’s posts without their knowledge. Facebook may have denied all the allegation on the third-party participation but it is very evident that user privacy is often compromised (BBC, 2018).
Face recognition is a growing technology that many smartphones and computer users are growing fond off. Many users perceive the technology to enhance the security of both their devices and online activities (Zhao, & Tsai, 2015). Many smartphones have been fitted with a front camera which the owner uses to unlock their phones. Social media platforms have also tapped into the technology with networks such as Facebook allowing users to tag their friends in the photos. However, without an appropriate 3D camera which uses real-time recognition, it is possible for a hacker to manipulate a 2D image to unlock and hack into the devices of a user and tamper with their information.
Healthcare organizations have not been left behind in terms of advanced technology. Today, almost every sector of healthcare provision has been upgraded to become digitalized. Previously, medical records pertaining to patients and the organizations were stored in paper files. the technological shift gave birth to the use of electronic health record which have enhanced patient outcome (Sahama et al., 2013). The nature of the information stored in the electronic health record is very sensitive as it comprises of identification date, diagnoses, medical history, as well as treatment for the patient. There is a lot of sharing of the patient information across the healthcare team which should be done only with the consent and permission of the patient. Anyone with ill intentions against a patient can hack into the system and use the information to exploit the patient through blackmail or to damage their reputation especially when the underlying condition is stigmatizing such as HIV or any other STIs.
How Privacy Concerns influence society
Privacy of information is very essential when it comes to maintaining respect and dignity within society. People want their online information to be safe and secrete in order to maintain their perceived status and respect within the community. Hackers take advantage of the sensitivity of such information to exploit their victims because they are aware that they would not want their information know to the public.
Parents have become very wary of the safety of their children given the rise in cases of online molestation. It is inevitable that children today have to use computer and smartphones in many areas which also include their education. However, parents have no control over what their children may be doing online. Through the information shared on their profiles, children find themselves in the hands of sexual predators. Smartphones and the availability of the internet contribute to the growing concerns over user privacy. The millennial generation has very easy access to smartphones and the internet that is flooding with ill minded pedophiles. In as much as smartphones are the in-thing among the young generation and have significantly influenced the nature of their relationships, parents have been forced to limit their access to smartphones.
The ugly truth is that the technology will be used and in some parts of the world like China is already being used to retrieve personal information. One’s internet behavior and social networking profiles are under watch which denies people their freedom to privacy. in China, for example, face recognition is widely in use where booking flights, hotels, and trains are done through face recognition. It may sound like a lucrative technology but it means that people are literally being followed and watched. It is inventible for people in such a country to avoid face recognition in their day to day life and their activities are limited unless they decide to wear masks to hide their faces. It makes it difficult for a tourist visiting a country such as China to get luxurious services since their faces do not appear in the biometric systems.
Technology is slowly controlling and changing consumer behavior. People have grown heavily dependent on technology such that their consumer behavior when purchasing smartphones is heavily dependent on how well the device provides safety of their information. Many people with a substantial income will more likely go for an Apple device that provided more user safety than most of the android devices. This also means that people are becoming more aware of the need to enhance their online privacy.
Big organizations such as healthcare now have policies that govern the use of computer technology. The HIPAA was a creation of the government to ensure that the privacy of information is maintained when using the EHRs
Conclusion
Computers can hold an enormous amount of data within a very small space which makes them most ideal for organizational performance. Hackers take advantage of the data storage capacity of computers to invade and exploit. Artificial intelligence through software such as face recognition has increased fear of privacy among people in as much as it is advantageous. Social media networks such as Facebook offer the greatest threat to users compared to other media platforms. Today, consumer behavior is heavily dependent on the ability of the devices to provide safety and privacy.
References
BBC. (2018, December 19). Facebook’s data-sharing deals exposed. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-46618582
Friedewald, M., & Pohoryles, R. J. (Eds.). (2016). Privacy and Security in the Digital Age: Privacy in the Age of Super-Technologies. Routledge.
Marwick, A. E., & Boyd, D. (2014). Networked privacy: How teenagers negotiate context in social media. New media & society, 16(7), 1051-1067.
Sahama, T., Simpson, L., & Lane, B. (2013, October). Security and Privacy in eHealth: Is it possible? In 2013 IEEE 15th International Conference on e-Health Networking, Applications and Services (Healthcom 2013) (pp. 249-253). IEEE.
Zhao, L., & Tsai, R. (2015). U.S. Patent No. 8,994,499. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
