Sometimes, I want to be Ron Swanson.
You’ve just had a conversation with your spouse about having pizza for dinner and you open an app to an add for Lou Malnatis. So who is listening and how do they know exactly what you need? This week I dug a little deeper into what our privacy rights are and exactly what these companies are doing with the information they collect from us.
When I take a moment to think about all of my information that could be getting collected I find myself with an uneasy feeling, but I must admit I fall under what is called the privacy paradox. According to Zomordi’s article, we justify that this data collection isn’t really hurting us and what’s the worst that can happen. This is what companies are counting on as we continue to accept terms of service and clicking adds.
Do You Know How Much Private Information You Give Away Every Day?
We as adults getting our data collected is one thing, but what about our students or our own children? I lived most of my childhood (until high school) without any social media or online presence, but kids today have access to these sites at younger and younger ages. Wired wrote, they [children and adolescents] have gone through the largest beta test of all time, and it’s not one that did not consider the fact that children make mistakes. We are trying to teach our students how to learn from their mistakes at the same time that an online program could be saving information that could affect a future college application or even a job. I certainly don’t want to held be accountable for what I said or did in tween/ teen years.
What can we do??
There is no one answer about how to protect ours and our students’ information online. Many tips can be found in this article from Geeks for Geeks. Some tips include browsing anonymously, using encrypted messaging apps, and using secure passwords. Many of the tips given can be done with little more effort than our typical browsing uses.
When it comes to the kids in our life including our students, communication is key. We need to have these open and honest conversations about how their data is used and how they can protect themselves. This activity could be a start.
Awareness seems like the most important step regardless of age. Do some research. Find out how your data is collected and decide what you want to block.
Thanks for your thoughts on privacy, Rachael. The more we talk about it and demand for transparency the more informed our decisions will be about what we find acceptable to "give away."
ReplyDeleteI agree that I fall into the category of what could they possibly gain from my searches. I am naïve to think anything "could/would" happen to me. I like how you have an idea to key the students into their own privacy on their own devices. I do not like the thought of a job knowing what I posted as a teenager! That is something to show students now in my middle school. I can get them thinking about what they accept and publish for the world to see. Great ideas for students and myself!
ReplyDeleteRachel, I chose to dive into algorithms and how they can have bias with the information we receive, how we use search engines and how we view social media such as targeted ads. This is also aligns with privacy and privacy laws to protect ourselves and our devices. I agree that sharing all of this information with our students is important as they continue to use online databases and social media.
ReplyDelete