Privacy On and Offline

Common day-to-day activities we partake in work in forming our digital footprint- the trail of data left when using the internet. Activities such as web searches, online purchases, location data, app usage, and many other components you may not even be aware of are contributing to the formation of our digital footprints. It is important for people to be aware of just how much information we are giving out daily and to be mindful of our digital footprints. As I watched a few TedTalks on privacy on and offline I was shocked by just how much information we give out every single day. 

The first TedTalk I watched, "Your Online Life, Permanent As A Tattoo" by Juan Enriquez painted the picture of our online presence perfectly. He begins the TED Talk by talking about body tattoos and how they show a lot of stories. He then compares them to forms of electronic tattoos, for example, social media sites, cell phones, GPS, security cameras, credit cards, and more. 

Each of these electronic tattoos shares information about who we are just as body tattoos do but on a deeper scale. He then dives into how facial recognition is constantly improving. When we take a photo on our cell phones it distinguishes who each person in the picture is even creating separate albums by your friends and family members throughout your camera roll. Facial recognition can also find the names of each person you take a photo of as well as download all of their records. In addition to this, companies are now implementing cameras that take your photo and tie it to social media figuring out your interests to better market products to people. These tattoos will live far longer than we do. He wraps up his speech by discussing the Greeks and how we are now threatened with immortality because of these electronic tattoos.

In addition to these electronic tattoos that we engage with, we are also being monitored just by having electronic devices around us even when they arent in use. Christopher Soghoian's TED Talk "How To Avoid Surveillance... With the Phone in Your Pocket" begins with him sharing the alarming fact that our telephone and the networks were wired for surveillance first. While on the phone, our government can be listening as well as another government, hackers, stalkers, criminals, and more. While telephone companies have made surveillance a priority, Silicon Valley companies have not by building encryption technology into their products ultimately making surveillance very difficult. 

Text messages sent from an iPhone to another iPhone can not be wiretapped easily and tech companies are now turning on encryption features in their products by default. This has allowed for easy communication without interference from governments and wiretapping of conversations. However, it has also angered several government officials. He emphasizes the importance of using the prevention of government surveillance tools to secure our calls and our messages.

While it may be more obvious we are constantly being tracked online, we are also being monitored out in public, everywhere we drive, and in every store we enter. Catherine Crump discusses current surveillance equipment which now allows police departments to gather more information on humans than ever before in her TED Talk "The Small and Surprisingly Dangerous Detail The Police Track About You." 

By just driving a car around alone they can gather things about you including religion, education, mental illnesses, and so much more. Even license plate readers track you determining the owner of the car, where you're going, and who you're with. The government can use this information to figure out how citizens interact which is information that used to be private. However, due to modern-day technology, access to citizen's information is far greater than necessary. And just because you don't see these trackers doesn't mean they aren't there.

Each of these issues affects me, my friends, my family, and every human as a whole. We are constantly being observed and monitored with little privacy anymore. The government should make stricter regulations on access to information though they are the ones accessing this information about humans. 

I believe that it is unlikely the government will do much about these issues in the future for they likely use the information learned to their benefit. However, we as humans can do a better job of keeping this information private. For example, simply turning our phones off when we are not using them prevents from the government hearing our conversations, and unplugging devices such as Alexa or Google when not using them so that it doesn't listen to every conversation you have. Although it is scary to realize all of these issues occurring around us from these TED Talks it is important to be aware of them so that we can take steps towards protecting the invasion of our privacy.