Privacy+in+a+Digital+World

The advent of digital technology has opened up a whole new world to be explored. To navigate this world safely, it is important to know the potential dangers and how one can protect oneself. One of the most significant issues on which digital media users need to be informed is the matter of privacy. Sociologist and anthropologist Zeynep Tufekci emphasizes that, unlike in the “real” world, the digital landscape has no spatial boundaries.[1] There is no way to tell who is watching or when. Given that we cannot identify our potential audiences or voyeurs, it is vital to know what is in our digital dossiers and who has access to them.
 * Privacy in a Digital World[[image:Privacy.jpg width="122" height="112" align="right"]] **

Modern cell phones are equipped with GPS tracking devices. The //Sprint Nextel// //Corporation// receives over eight million requests per year for cell phone users’ locations from law enforcement.[2] Search engines such as //Google// and //Yahoo!// have the capability to store the search queries of all of their users. In August of 2006, AOL released an online list of search histories from 657,000 Americans.[3] AOL removed the list after protests from privacy groups, but not before the list was copied and circulated across the Internet.[4] Search queries included topics such as “60 single men,” “depression and medical leave,” and “fear that spouse contemplating cheating.” At least one user from this list was identified and publicly broadcasted across the Web, despite AOL’s use of id numbers to “protect user privacy.”[5]

** Students and Online Privacy **
Today’s youth, all the way from Kindergarten to Grade 12, are avid users of the Internet. They access the digital world for entertainment, training, fact-checking, current affairs/interests, person-to-person networking, shopping, social networking, travel, diary functions, e-government, finance, and civic participation. [6] On top of these activities are school-initiated pursuits, such as research or the use of online educational programs. With the amount of time today’s students spend online, it is especially important that their privacy is protected.

In 2001, an American study reviewed 111 websites frequently visited by children between the ages of 6 and 12. [7] Of these websites:


 * 92.3% collected the name of the child,
 * 62.9% collected their mailing addresses, [[image:StudentComp.jpg width="130" height="113" align="right"]]
 * 30.5% collected their phone numbers. [8]

Studies have shown that “children become so deeply absorbed in online activities that they enter a “flow” state- or a noncritical state of mind” [9] which makes them less sensitive to potential invasions of privacy.

The nonchalant attitude of digital natives towards the Internet is one of their biggest pitfalls in terms of online privacy. In 2005, survey data was collected from 3,011 Canadian students between the ages of 13 and 17.[10] Of these students:


 * 76.2% indicated they would disclose their real name and address to get a free email account
 * 48.9% reported never having read the privacy policies of the websites that they visit
 * 44.6% believed it was safe to tell a secret in an email
 * 31% indicated that they have shared their instant messaging or email password with friends
 * 58.5% met and communicated with strangers online
 * 20.8% met and communicated with strangers online, and then arranged to meet in person [11]

For the protection of students, privacy awareness needs to be addressed as part of the elementary and high school curriculum. As teachers incorporate technology into the classroom, they must also teach their charges to protect themselves and their digital dossiers. Click on __Privacy Protecting Habits__ to find out how to protect your students (and yourself).

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[1] Zeynep Tufekci, “Can You See Me Now? Audience and Disclosure Regulation in Online Social Network Sites,” //Bulletin of Science Technology & Society//, 28:20 (2008), 22 [2] Christopher Harris, “Choose Privacy: It’s Time to Take Charge of Our Digital Identity,” //School Library Journal//, 56:1 (Jan 2010), 12 [3] Daniel Hillyard and Mark Gauen, “Issues Around the Protection or Revelation of Personal Information,” //Knowledge, Technology and Policy//, 20:2 (Summer 2007), 122 [4] Ibid. [5] Michael Barbaro and Tom Zeller, Jr., “A Face is Exposed for AOL Searcher no.4417749,” //New York Time//s, 9 August 2006 [6] Ellen Johanna Helsper and Rebecca Eynon, “Digital Natives: Where is the Evidence?” //British Educational Research Journal//, 36:3 (June 2010), 510 [7] Judith L. Lewandowski, “Stepping Off the Sidewalk,” //Journal of School Violence//, 2:1, 34 [8] Ibid, 37 [9] Amy Aidman, “Children’s Online Privacy,” //Educational Leadership//, 58:2 (Oct 2000), 46 [10] Valerie Steeves and Cheryl Webster, “Closing the Barn Door: The Effect of Parental Supervision on Canadian Children’s Online Privacy,” //Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society//, 28:4 (2008), 7 [11] Ibid, 8, 16, 17
 * all graphics and videos are the original work of the author