Is Online Privacy Dead - Research Paper Example

Is Online Privacy Dead? Introduction Online privacy simply refers to the right of protection of online information pertaining to an individual, a group or a body. This privacy ensures security of such kind of information, and requires that such information should not be revealed or made available to a third party without the owner’s consent (Society, Nd). Initially, the rules and regulations with regards to online privacy were highly adhered to. This enhanced security of private or individual information available on the internet, and that it was only the owner by right of such information that had the authority to disseminate the same. Whenever a third party sought to have access to personal information belonging to someone, there were strict rules of procedure that operated to ensure that the same was effected only upon the owner’s consent. That was then. In the contemporary society, however, things are very different. The rules and procedure with regard to accessing online personal information are no longer adhered to as before. It is not surprising to log onto the web and find all manner of personal information belonging to individuals, groups or bodies. One would think that it is in this era that such rules should even be upheld with vigor and not to be compromised under any circumstances. But that is not the case. Despite being a digital world where every kind of transaction, application or interaction requires the disclosure of personal information, the privacy rules have become less relevant (Jose, 2013). No one seems to care about the advertizing of personal, private and confidential information on the internet. No one seems to be bothered by the fact that personal information belonging to uninformed individuals are traded on the internet like mere business commodities. Purpose Statement The question that begs, therefore, is who is to carry the blame for all this. Who should be held responsible? Should it be the individuals who fearlessly and un cautiously disclose all their personal information online, or are we to blame those who are in custody of the same private information. The purpose of this research is therefore to delve deeply into this issue and find the root of the problem and suggest possible cure to the same. The paper discusses whether online privacy is still in operation and how far it goes to secure personal information. Simply put, the paper discusses whether or not online privacy is dead. This has been a controversial issue that has left many in endless debates (House, 2014). While some argue that the current level of technology is not sufficient to safeguard private information online, some are of the opinion that those charged with the safeguarding duty have terribly failed at it. In addition, the paper discusses the real motive behind the revealing of such information. It tries to discover why the custodians of private information uploaded online usually turn out to be the real villains. Research Question The major objective of the paper is to discuss extensively the issue of online private policy and its relation to private information. This will involve giving an outline on the essence of disclosing private information on the internet and how the same can or should be safeguarded. The paper will also discuss some of the practical ways through which individuals in different parts of the world use to protect their personal information online. In essence therefore, the paper seeks whether to agree or disagree with the real state of private policy. Is it dead or does it still operate to protect personal information online? Significance of the Research The outcomes of the research, which will be critically discussed in this paper, will go a long way to provide information on the particular subject of online privacy. It will give a clear insight of how the advancement in technology has brought more harm with it than the good it does to people. It will give some of the ways in which personal information uploaded on the internet leaks, and what can be done to prevent the same. On the other hand, the paper will discuss with clarity the loopholes that exist in the rules and regulations supposed to safeguard online private information. In conclusion, the effects of the lack of a proper online privacy policy will be discussed and recommendations made towards the same. This research will therefore prove to be beneficial to every internet user, by providing an insight on their right to privacy and make them proactive in safeguarding the same rights. Methodology In gathering and compiling the information used in this paper, various websites and journal articles have been consulted. These source majorly provided information focused on the issue of online privacy and privacy policy in relation to personal information. Although all the information in these sources could not fit into this paper, the same have been properly referenced to enable the reader of this paper to obtain more information on the same issue of online privacy. Findings Online Privacy Rights As discussed earlier in the introduction, online privacy rights are those rights that seek to secure privacy of information posted online by individuals, groups or organizations. Of most importance to note is the fact that these rights do not extend to protect information that is meant for the public. In the contemporary society, there are rights that exist to ensure security of personal information uploaded on the internet (H.Fred, 2009). One of them is the right to edit personal information uploaded online. This is a right only given to the individual whose personal information is uploaded on the internet. This enables him to vary and update the information accordingly, in order to best serve the purpose for which it was uploaded online. The online privacy right is the right to determine the destination of personal information. Here, it is only the owner of such information that has the power and authority to transfer information from one individual or location to another. This right requires anyone with the desire to access such information to first seek the consent of the owner (Debatin & Lovejoy, 2009). This works to ensure that personal information does not exchange hands and locations without the knowledge of the individual at the center of it. This right also gives the owner of information the freedom and freewill to choose when and to whom the information should be given. Such rights work to ensure that no one obtains such information by force or illegally. The other is the right to access and retrieve personal information at any given time or place. Of all rights provided by the online privacy policy, this one appears to be the most important. It is to the effect that nothing should deny one to access his personal information for any reason. However, this right has a few limitations, especially if the person concerned has been charged with a criminal offence or so (Jonathan, 2009). However, under normal circumstances, this right should be highly respected and safeguarded. This is majorly because some individuals store information online for security purposes, and therefore it might be of great inconvenience to them if they were denied to access the same. The final right to be discussed in this paper is the right to sue. This is the one that gives permission to an online user to approach the courts of law for assistance whenever they feel their personal information’s security is compromised. More so, it gives an individual the right to sue if their personal information is illegally obtained and used for the wrong or non-permitted reasons. In the recent past, this is the right that most people and authorities have been seeking to protect (Microsoft, 2013). The corridors of justice have been flooded with online privacy policy cases, to the effect that some issues are never completely dispensed with. As far as it goes, these are the most basic and essential rights provided by the online privacy policy. There are, however, many other rights that the online privacy policy does not guarantee. For instance the, right to decline giving personal information. In today’s world, almost every online activity has been digitalized. This involves disclosing personal information before an individual can be accorded even the simplest of services. As much as personal information is private and should only be given out of will, there is no single legislation that protects an individual when it comes to this (Oxford, 2004). This therefore leaves people with no other option but to disclose their most personal information, which they are not guaranteed of its security. Another right that is not available with regard to online privacy is the right to decline government’s access to personal information. This has been and still is a controversial issue with clearly divided opinion. While some intellectuals are of the opinion that government’s access is necessary for security purposes, others suggest that the government uses this as a scapegoat while pursuing its own agenda (Oxford, 2004). However, the fact that the government is a third party to such information draws the argument of whether the online privacy policy should be subject to exceptions. Research has shown that no matter how the online privacy policy seeks to safeguard individuals’ online information, the quest for ensuring security by the government has always worked to underestimate the policy. Online Activities That Reveal Private Information It is a non-disputable fact that the world we currently live in cannot operate in the absence of online activities. Most transactions, communication, advertizing, Research, etc is done online. The internet is the most useful tool whenever one wants to access certain knowledge or information. However, this comes with a cost. The cost of disclosing personal information. There are, therefore, various ways in which personal information finds itself on the internet. One of the ways is through social networking. It is common knowledge that before one can register on any of the social network sites; face book, twitter and Skype, one is required to supply personal information including the name, date of birth, etc. This personal information is then kept in a database somewhere on the internet. The other way is through accessing research materials. Some websites, blogs and online libraries do not allow an individual to access their materials without logging in. This therefore necessitates the supply of information by an individual in order to create an account through which they can be able to log in. However, the most prevalent way through which individuals give their information is through business transactions. This includes activities such as advertizing, purchasing or even securing credit services. In fact, this is where an individual is required to supply the deepest of personal information. This is because such companies always seek to access most of the information so as to be able to effectively attend to the needs of such individuals. Location data betrayal is the other way through which information gets to the internet. This refers to a system where an online-operated device has the capability to track the physical location of an individual at any given time (Melissa, 2013). This is a practice that mostly goes with social networks, face book being the latest. This therefore means many online users are able to locate the location of an individual independently. As much as it can be of benefit at times, it places an individual into risky situations, and even making them susceptible to criminal offences. For instance, the 1999 incidence where Amy Boyer, a 20-year old girl, was stalked online and killed, should serve as the best example of the dangers that come with providing location data on the internet. These are, however, not the only ways through which individuals provide their information online. There are others that could not be sufficiently discussed in this paper, including logging into email accounts and browsing using cookies. Conclusion From the foregoing discussion, a number of conclusions can be drawn. The first one, which is a reality, is that more people are tracking you than you think. In the contemporary society, the security of personal information uploaded on the internet can never be guaranteed. The other conclusion is that individuals have been awaken by online incidences where criminals access personal information belonging to an individual and use it for their personal gains, leaving the owner of such information screwed and in jeopardy (H.Fred, 2009). It is for this reasons that individuals are now willing to provide as less as possible personal information on the internet, because they can never be assured of its security. This is bringing a lot of problems, especially where companies operating online wants to access as much personal information as possible before they can be able to0 extend their services to individuals. Another conclusion drawn from the research is that there is no particular side to blame in entirety. This is because almost every individual is aware of the threat posed to personal information uploaded online, as shown by the pie chart below. It shows clearly that there is no individual who is safe when it comes to internet usage. This therefore means that as much as the custodians of such online information have somehow failed at their responsibility of safeguarding it, they cannot be entirely blamed. It seems that the current level of technology being used by crooks to access this information online outweighs the strength and effectiveness of the tools being employed to address the situation. Recommendations We live in a world where data collection is the order of the day. Even if such data is not collected via an online process, it will still be stored on the internet. The notion that the world can operate without the disclosure, supply and dissemination of information online is a total lie. The best cure therefore is to find the best ways of combating the problems and issues than undermine online privacy (House, 2014). Online privacy on its own right is not dead. What needs to be reviewed or rather amended, is the online privacy policies. More rights should be guaranteed so as to do away with the many exceptions to the general rule of information privacy. The efforts for doing so should be two way. Individuals should be proactive in safeguarding their own information on the internet. The graph below suggests that web users are aware of some of the information that should be safeguarded, and how much they care about the same (Greg, 2013) . It is undisputable that protecting privacy nowadays requires tools such as technology and education. However, the most important tool would be strong laws and policies that would impose serious obligations on industries who work as custodians of personal information. A good example would be the Obama Administration which, in 2012, proposed the creation of a ‘privacy bill of rights’ legislation that would give individuals the right to decide when and when not to be traced by various companies (Melissa, 2013). To the individual online users and owners of private information, the only way to best protect themselves is by being adequately informed before uploading any personal or private information online. One should seek to learn more about the destination of his personal information, before disclosing the same, for online privacy is not dead. References Debatin, B., & Lovejoy, J. P. (2009). Facebook and Online Privacy: Attitudes, Behaviours and Unintended Consequences. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication , 83-108. Greg, S. (2013, September 5). Report. Retrieved November 5, 2014, from Almost 90 Percent Concerned about online privacy and trying to avoid advertisers: http://marketingland.com/report-almost-90-percent-concerned-about-online-privacy-58136 H.Fred, C. (2009). Internet Privacy: Mind Your Own Business. The Journal , 10-45. House, P. R. (2014, October Nd). Fact Sheet 18: Online Privacy. Retrieved November 5, 2014 from Using the Internet Safely: ://www.privacyrights.org/online-privacy-using-internet-safely Jonathan, S. (2009, September-October Nd). Havard Magazine. Retrieved November 5, 2014, from The Erosion of Privacy in The Internet Era: http://harvardmagazine.com/2009/09/privacy-erosion-in-internet-era Jose, P. (2013, October 17). CNN. Retrieved November 5, 2014, from Online Privacy is Dead: http://money.cnn.com/2013/10/17/technology/online-privacy/ Melissa, R. (2013, April 8). PC World. Retrieved November 5, 2014, from The 5 Biggest Online Privacy Threats of 2013: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2031908/the-5-biggest-online-privacy-threats-of-2013.html?page=2 Microsoft. (2013, May Nd). Safety and Security Center. Retrieved November 5, 2014, from Online Safety Research: http://www.microsoft.com/security/resources/research.aspx Oxford. (2004). International Data Privacy Law. Oxford Journals , 4-15. Society, I. (Nd, Nd Nd). Privacy and Identity. Retrieved November 5, 2014, from Privacy and Identity: http://www.internetsociety.org/what-we-do/internet-technology-matters/privacy-identity Read More