privacy online

Limited Privacy

"Electronic tattoos" otherwise known as an online view of who you are. Apart from tracking across nearly every application or website we use, but face recognition is also on the rise. There is little space to move in private in such an online world. Especially when so many online resources we use, sell our information and in turn our privacy. These electronic tattoos can also be seen as our digital footprint. Everything we search, post, or view is tracked and saved so we should be careful navigating the internet.  

Government tracking of our every move. They can know where we are at all times, who we are interacting with, and who we interact with on a regular basis. They can also keep a record

of this. Treating everyone as if they have done something wrong when no crime has been committed. This form of tracking can and is being easily abused by not only the government but also everyday law enforcement. This is actually very scary because this can cause more discrimination of minorities and minority neighborhoods. Also the fact that it is done without a majority of people’s knowledge is wrong and should not be allowed. 

Surveillance through calls and messages can be read and accessed through wire taps. These wiretaps can then be hacked by anyone with the knowledge to do so. Meaning it can be used by people to cause harm to others. Tech companies can work against this, like Apple, by encrypting phone calls. Though they could be useful to catch terrorist and other criminals. They are also being used to monitor people who have not committed a crime and are not planning to commit a crime. These taps can also be used by enemy states to monitor us. I think it is more dangerous to have no encryption than to have it. Yes the government will have it harder trying to look into people of interest but the rest of us will be safer. 

It has been clear for a while now that we have little privacy online. It is only now that it is becoming aware that we also lack privacy offline. Our devices listen in even when we aren't using them. We can be tracked just by driving our car or by having a phone in our pocket. Ways we can protect ourselves can include; using phones that have encryption, and using web browsers that block tracking, cookies, and ads. When it comes to privacy offline I'm not sure there is much we can do besides try and get laws passed preventing these types of tracking.