Post 9: Privacy in the Digital Age

     I've always been aware of the government and search engines storing some information about people's online footprint but I didn't know the extreme to which they go to have surveillance and information on people until this past class. 

    Since discussing Facebook and Google's invasion of privacy in particular, I have begun to feel very uncomfortable using these platforms. In fact, as soon as the class was over, I added a more private search engine called DuckDuckGo on my laptop so that Google can't track all of my searches. I am very uncomfortable with the idea that my whole online footprint can be stored and surveyed. Not only do I think that it's a horrible invasion of privacy, but I also think that it's easy for people to make assumptions about you based on your online footprint that might not be an accurate representation of who you really are. 

I was especially shocked when I watched a Ted talk about how phones have been created for surveillance, so it is easy for governments, hackers, and other people who have no business listening to your calls and reading your texts to intercept your communication and calls with others. This makes me feel like I have to be extremely cautious about what I type and say because it could so easily be taken out of context and used against me. Overall, this situation makes me feel very violated and vulnerable. I'm mad that so many people and organizations think it's acceptable to listen in on people's conversations and keep tabs on everything they do on the internet.

    I am especially upset by the fact that this happens so much in America where freedom and privacy are seemingly promoted. The whole concept seems very hypocritical and goes against what we are supposed to stand for as a country. After learning about the lack of privacy online and from using technology, I am going to take as many precautions as possible to limit the amount of information that can be stored about me. In this day and age it is impossible to try to get along without using a phone or laptop, but I am going to stop these organizations from taking as much privacy away from me as possible.

https://www.ted.com/talks/christopher_soghoian_how_to_avoid_surveillance_with_the_phone_in_your_pocket#t-6440

https://www.ted.com/talks/juan_enriquez_your_online_life_permanent_as_a_tattoo