Privacy

    Do you think our information is safe? That we actually have private lives? Well I am gonna go ahead and say we don't. I watched a few videos from TED Talk, all focusing on different forms of privacy. 

One video talked about how easily social media and the content you post can watch you, and contained warnings. Another talked about license plate scanners, and the information they collect on the public. A third talked about how easily your phones can be monitored, and how they are easily compromised. And the fourth talked about a different, scarier form of privacy: digital domestic violence. All of these are invasions of our individual privacy. I do not like the idea of any of this, and I wish that we could live more secure lives in this age of technology. But unfortunately, I do not believe it is possible

How do these issues affect me? My friends? My Family?

    I find it scary how much information can be found about me, if someone were to really try. A quick google information reveals so much about me. You find a social media page, my high school senior portrait, school information of everywhere I have been, and a website that contains so much information on me and my family members. Unfortunately, one of the only things it got wrong was my age. But maybe that is for the better. I despise this, and unfortunately, I do not know what to do about it. I try and do as much as I can to keep my information private, but when I found this website at the top of the google results page, I do not know what I can do about it. It scares me.

What should the government be doing about these issues?

    To me, a better question is: what can the government do about these issues? The many websites I found were of public information, and they are not government regulated. Sure, the government has their own data, but (as far as I am aware) they do not make that information of regular citizens available to the public. All the information collected is from all over the internet. Anything you might sign up for will track you. So when I ask what the government should do? I would suggest anything that can regulate companies that track you, and preventing them from publishing your information. 

What can we do to protect ourselves from the invasion of privacy?

    Unfortunately, I no longer know what can be done to protect ourselves and our private information. I thought I was doing a good job. I don't post on social media, and I only have accounts in order to view others. I believe that having a minimal presence on the internet, especially on social media platforms, is the first step that should be taken. After that, you need to figure out how much information is actually out there about yourself. Then you can work to take all of that down, by finding out where it may be coming from. Protect yourselves. Stay private.