Contribution of Internet Use to Privacy - Essay Example

Contribution of Internet Use to Privacy College This research is being submitted on the for (course number) (name of course) Contribution of Internet Use to Privacy Most everything these days can be had, can be seen, and can be done online. While technological advancements have progressed at an alarming rate, the measures to protect the privacy of its users have not been modernized to accommodate these advancements. Even with the appropriate legislative policies enacted by government authorities, these measures still fail to protect people’s privacy.

The internet has provided the necessary tools to reduce privacy and to make it more difficult to protect. Facebook founder Mark Zuckenberg created a major stir when he famously remarked, ‘privacy is dead.’ This statement was made in response to the protest of Facebook users about the decreased privacy features of Facebook (Popkin, 2010). Zuckerberg would later apologize for such comments and would later relent to demands of users on the establishment of protective measures for their privacy.

Even with these measures in place however, so much private information are still being made available and accessible through the internet (Lipschultz, 2008). Accessing websites often require the entry of email addresses and these email addresses are often sold to advertisers who then send spam to the electronic mails (Angwin, 2010). Many scams also gain access to these email addresses and send bogus mail which attempt to convince the user to give up their names, Social Security Numbers, Credit card numbers, bank accounts, birthdays, addresses, phone numbers, and similar personal information.

Once this information is gained, credit card phishing and skimming are carried out, often charging thousands into user’s credit cards and sometimes cleaning out their bank accounts (Angwin, 2010). Despite its numerous merits, the use of the World Wide Web as it is commonly known also has its negative repercussions. The internet, through the social networking sites and online economic transactions, carries a lot of information, both private and public (Angwin, 2010). People however are still eager to use it despite its negative implications in regard to privacy.

It has become an indispensable part of their lives (Hoffman, Novak, and Ventakesh, 2004). The World Wide Web is a universal trend and within it carries vital private information about people all over the world. There is no disbelief that the internet has to an immense deal changed the lives of people but what about its negative side on privacy matters? The ever increasing exchange and storage of personal information on the internet seems to have largely been compromised (Angwin, 2010). For example, it has been used for fraudulent purposes more so in breaching vital monetary and identity information.

Online financial accounts have been hacked by fraudsters with a high level of skills in information technology thus inconveniencing the financial activity of the owners. Nevertheless, people do not learn from these situations as the victims regard the circumstances as bad luck. An individual provides information to strangers nearly all the time when online. This is time and again like a riddle that has to be solved before the truth is discovered.  Information provided to an individual or corporation is senseless but only if it is pooled with information that the individual provides to another individual or company.

The internet has also been used as a means to destroy the reputation of many members of the public, including celebrities, business leaders, politicians and others. Spreading propaganda through the internet has worked so well for such people. A negative statement that concerns an influential person among the masses has always led to invasion of the private life of the victim (Harmon, 2004). For instance, the posting of pornographic materials with faces of the influential figures tarnishes their reputation.

Social sites like Twitter and Facebook have also made people’s privacy highly vulnerable with postings of photos, comments, and other personal information. For individuals who fail to protect such privacy, they become vulnerable to scammers, hackers, spammers, and other fraudulent activities. Conclusively, in relation to the thesis statement, internet has endangered people’s privacy, making their private information vulnerable to fraudulent activities. Even though people still trust that the internet is a haven for their confidential information, this is not 100% exact and safe.

A secret has never stayed for the longest time if it is between two people. References Angwin, J. (2010). The Webs New Gold Mine: Your Secrets. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703940904575395073512989404.html Franzen, J. (2012). Biography.com. Retrieved from http://www.biography.com/people/jonathan-franzen-507555 Harmon, A. (2004). Internet Gives Teenage Bullies Weapons to Wound From Afar. New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.

com/2004/08/26/education/26bully.html?pagewanted=all Hoffman, D. L., Novak, T. P., and Venkatesh, A. (2004). Has the Internet Become Indispensable? Communications of the ACM, (47:7), pp. 37-42. Lipschultz, J. (2008). Broadcast and internet indecency: defining free speech. New York: Routledge. Popkin, H. (2010). Privacy is dead on Facebook. Get over it. Msnbc.com. Retrieved from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34825225/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets/t/privacy-dead-facebook-get-over-it/#.

Ty3rTIGgmSo Rosenwasser, D., & Stephen, J. (2012). Writing analytically with readings. (2nd ed.). Boston, MA: Wadsworth