How much control over our privacy do we really have?

I found this week’s reading on privacy extremely insightful.  After reading the chapter on “Artificial barriers” by Andrew McStay I found myself wondering how much information I share willingly with the world of the web in order to widen my communication with others. It poses the question of how much control do we really have over our information as individuals or is our control just a misconception. For example when I signed up to Facebook I had to give a certain amount of personal information in order to use the site like my name, age and my friends. The idea we swap privacy for prizes was a very true concept. Even when you sign up to an online clothing store you have to give them your address and card details in order to make the purchase. Therefore you’re giving away your privacy in order to obtain a prize being the clothing you purchased.  The positives about social media sites is it’s a free and accessible way in order for myself to communicate with my friends and family who live overseas but I have to give away part of my privacy in order to have that privilege.  

 It is a frightening concept to believe we are all being sectioned into certain categories for advertising purposes.  Although I find the advertising recommendations useful, it still feels like I have no control over what is being presented to me. For instance if I’m trying to save money but constantly get bombarded with advertisements for items I made want but don’t need its more likely I will cave in and buy the product.

“The internet is an open structure and by logging-on we potentially expose ourselves and our data traces to the entire world.” (McStay, 2011:71).  I understand that as a society our data needs to be monitored for security reasons and for that purpose I find it comforting to know that we are being observed but it raises the issue of how much control the government can have over our personal information. Also if this progresses what boundaries as individuals do we have left.

The study conducted by Michal Kosinski and David Stillwell about behavioural advertising was a simple but effective way to demonstrate how much control advertisers have. I was shocked that they could gather an individual’s sexuality, age and even race just by the things they liked on Facebook.  It’s interesting to think that advertisers know what you would like before you do. In a negative way I feel as though I’m being brainwashed into buying products and if they didn't

have any trace of my personal information on the web I could think more freely. On the other hand, advertisements are everywhere in daily life so would I truly be free or simply free from the online world?

References

Lawyersdotcom. (22 /03/2012) Privacy Issues on Facebook are here to Stay, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPaHMtkfFSA&hd=1. Accessed 31/03/2014.

McStay, A. (2011) The Mood of Information, New York: Continuum. Chapter 4.

Stillwell, D; Kosinski, M.  ( 11/03/2013) Private Traits and Attributes are Predictable from Digital Records of Human Behaviour, Cambridge Psychometrics Centre.

Vattimo, G. (1992) The Transparent Society, Cambridge: Polity Press.