The Pros And Cons Of Privacy Online

1333 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Internet privacy

Privacy is used to remain anonymity while online. While browsing online, there are lots of things that your personal information can be exposed to in the online world and there are lots of different ways to prevent this from happening. I will be discussing if it is truly possible to remain private online while using the internet effectively. Certain methods of remaining anonymous online will have different difficulties in order to follow them, I will take this into account when I am analysing my findings as not everyone who wishes to remain private online is going to be computer literate. I will also take into account that the internet is accessed through a range of devices (mobiles, tablets, and desktop PCs) so I will focus on remaining private …show more content…

This is because there is an extensive amount of software available on all devices that enables you to hide your location, communicate securely, hide your web activity, cover your digital footprints, securely encrypt your files, hide your IP address, and finally secure other devices that are foreign to you. However, such privacy is not easy to come by and may be difficult to set up and use. This is why only some people can expect to have privacy while online as long as they have the knowledge to do so, for everyone to remain private online more tutorials need to be on the internet to help people remain private and stay safe from hackers and white collar criminals. Also, security software such as VPN software includes technical difficulties which change the language of your browser as it locates you to a different country, and can greatly slow down connection speeds. Proxy servers can also be costly to use in order to boost connection speeds. Encrypting emails are not practical because the recipient needs to have an encryption key in order to open and respond to messages which means you would have to attain their keys before sending any messages. Staying private online also comes with its drawbacks and greatly reduces user efficiency as some programs are not user friendly, and connection speeds can be slow. This draws me to a conclusion that it is possible to stay completely private while online, but it takes great difficulty and requires adept skills in security, which is why most people are not able to achieve this sense of

Show More
Related

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of Why Privacy Matters Even If You Have Nothing To Hide

    496 Words  | 1 Pages

    The word “privacy” has a different meaning in our society than it did in previous times. You can put on Privacy settings on Facebook, twitter, or any social media sights, however, nothing is truly personal and without others being able to view your information. You can get to know a person’s personal life simply by typing in their name in google. In the chronicle review, “Why Privacy Matters Even if You Have ‘Nothing to Hide,'" published on May 15th 2011, Professor Daniel J. Solove argues that the issue of privacy affects more than just individuals hiding a wrong. The nothing-to-hide argument pervades discussions about privacy. Solove starts talking about this argument right away in the article and discusses how the nothing-to-hide

    Read More

  • Essay on Internet Privacy - Carnivore, and the Power Of FBI Surveillance

    1739 Words  | 4 Pages

    There is considerable utilitarian value in extending privacy rights to the Internet. The fear that communication is being monitored by a third party inevitably leads to inefficiency, because individuals feel a need to find loopholes in the surveillance. For instance, if the public does not feel comfortable with communica...

    Read More

  • Online Privacy: Is It Really Possible?

    1848 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Internet is a vast world of virtual information. Activities like online shopping and social networking sites have put people in the position to ask themselves how private their own information is among the rest of the Internet. Can the average person completely control their privacy or are some parts of their personal information out of their control? To go along with that, is online privacy the complete responsibility of the individual? I have found that online privacy can be difficult to completely control because of the various types of tracking and third party devices. With that said, although these devices can get private information very subtly, being informed of the information gathering methods can help a person make better decisions for their privacy on the Internet. However, complete privacy is unlikely (Mitchell, 2013).

    Read More

  • Personal Privacy in a Technologically Public World

    2496 Words  | 5 Pages

    "No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks."1

    Read More

  • Online Data Tracking: An Invasion of Privacy?

    1364 Words  | 3 Pages

    The personal connection Americans have with their phones, tablets, and computers; and the rising popularity of online shopping and social websites due to the massive influence the social media has on Americans, it is clear why this generation is called the Information Age, also known as Digital Age. With the Internet being a huge part of our lives, more and more personal data is being made available, because of our ever-increasing dependence and use of the Internet on our phones, tablets, and computers. Some corporations such as Google, Amazon, and Facebook; governments, and other third parties have been tracking our internet use and acquiring data in order to provide personalized services and advertisements for consumers. Many American such as Nicholas Carr who wrote the article “Tracking Is an Assault on Liberty, With Real Dangers,” Anil Dagar who wrote the article “Internet, Economy and Privacy,” and Grace Nasri who wrote the article “Why Consumers are Increasingly Willing to Trade Data for Personalization,” believe that the continuing loss of personal privacy may lead us as a society to devalue the concept of privacy and see privacy as outdated and unimportant. Privacy is dead and corporations, governments, and third parties murdered it for their personal gain not for the interest of the public as they claim. There are more disadvantages than advantages on letting corporations, governments, and third parties track and acquire data to personalized services and advertisements for us.

    Read More

  • Internet Privacy: A Right or a Privilage?

    921 Words  | 2 Pages

    Privacy has always been a key personal right for many people. People need that personal space or bubble to themselves that nobody else can penetrate. Especially with the way everything is heading today with the new technologies on the brink nobody has any alone time. It is becoming more and more of a hot topic to people. They want to know that their personal information stays personal, and out of reach of other people. With all the ways that people’s privacy can be breached they have a reason for being a little worried. Out of all these one of the bigger topics is internet privacy. What happens to all their information that is used and posted on the internet? The internet lacks security and legislation when it comes to email providers, search engines, and social networking sites. This has led some people to use private peer-to-peer communication networks such as Freenet and BitTorrent.

    Read More

  • The Privacy Of Privacy

    1342 Words  | 3 Pages

    Scrolling through my Facebook feed on my iPhone, casually looking at my friend’s pictures statuses and updates, I came across a video with an amusing title. I tapped the play button expecting the video to load. Instead, I was redirected to an app asking permission to access my “public information, pictures and more.” I then realized; what I considered to be “private information” was not private anymore. Privacy is becoming slowly nonexistent, due to the invasion of advertising companies and the information we publicly post in the online world. In the essay “The Piracy of Privacy: Why Marketers Must Bare Our Souls” by Allen D. Kanner remarks, how major companies such as Google, Yahoo and Microsoft get billions of transmissions each year on

    Read More

  • Essay on Internet Privacy - Ethical Issues Raised by Privacy Service Providers

    2877 Words  | 6 Pages

    Part of the allure of the Internet has always been the anonymity it offers its users.  As the Internet has grown however, causing capitalists and governments to enter the picture, the old rules are changing fast.  E-commerce firms employ the latest technologies to track minute details on customer behavior.  The FBI's Carnivore email-tracking system is being increasingly used to infringe on the privacy of netizens.  Corporations now monitor their employees' web and email usage.  In addition to these privacy infringements, Internet users are also having their use censored, as governments, corporations, and other institutions block access to certain sites.  However, as technology can be used to wage war on personal freedoms, it can also be employed in the fight against censorship and invasion of privacy.

    Read More

  • Privacy vs. Security

    1260 Words  | 3 Pages

    Solove, Daniel J. “5 Myths about Privacy” Washington Post: B3. Jun 16 2013. SIRS. Web. 10

    Read More

  • Privacy: Security, Confidentiality, or Convenience?

    3152 Words  | 7 Pages

    The evolution of the Internet started from the department of defense's project, and rapidly distributed to world wide. With the rise of the Internet age comes with the benefits and the concerns. Because of the easeness to communicate information and displaying data, the first amendment needs to be applied to this communication channel. How are we using and communicating information without offending and harm others? Since the evolution of the Internet, there has been acts from Congress to regulate the use the Internet such as the Communications Decency Act in 1996 and the Child Online Protection Act in 1998. These acts aim to forbid Internet users from displaying offensive speech to users or exposing children of indecent materials. The Internet raises other issues that people might have. The biggest and most debatable topic is the privacy issue. Is the Internet a safe place to protect personal information such as financial information, medical data, etc…? Some people who are computer literate or at least with some experience in software and technology would not trust to release the information on the web or at random sites . As a matter of fact, any unknown or small vendor on the web would have difficulty getting many customers to do business online. Big vendors such as Amazon would want to secure their network infrastructure to protect the users information, so that their server would not be hacked. However, even this style of protecting personal information is not enough. The users demand further protection such as ensuring their information is not being sold to other vendors for misuse, or spam the users mailbox with soliticing.

    Read More

  • The Extinction of Privacy

    1175 Words  | 3 Pages

    This world has changed, even as 20 years old, I am afraid of where technology is going already everyone is glued to it; as a kid computers were new, but we didn’t care we played outside, and cell phones were for emergencies, not fun. Due to technology privacy almost doesn’t exist in this day of technology anymore, there are secret spy cameras being placed in homes by jealous friends or family; social media sites pushing you to spill your age, looks, feelings, life story, and more, and “Big Brother” and “Little Brother” everywhere. Everyone has to be careful because everywhere there is someone trying to steal someone’s identity whether the reason is for money, for legality in a new country, or even to hide a past troubled life. Privacy in the world has been, is now, and always will be extremely important. Growing up in school after getting my first cell phone I was fascinated with new technology and couldn’t wait for the next cell phone to be released. I was always highly interested in what was next, but that was then when I was a young and obvious little kid, now as a young adult in this day of age I have an entirely different feel for all of it; privacy no longer exists and technology is the primary blame.

    Read More

  • Negative Effects Of Digital Privacy

    1089 Words  | 3 Pages

    As we evolve in the information age, online privacy rights have grown over the past years. In 1986, a federal law was passed to protect an individual’s electronical information. “This law was produced to make a fair balance among the privacy expectations of citizens and the legitimate needs of law enforcement” (EPIC). With the Internet developing intensely, there is a great deal at stake such as the theft of your identification. But where it all begins is when you access the Internet. This is the first step in being aware of your privacy because you go through the process in signing up with an Internet Service Provider (ISP). With this process you have a IP address attached to your ISP. This is the primary step on how your information starts

    Read More

  • The Use Of DNA In Criminal Investigations

    1331 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is within a person’s sphere of privacy that the person nurtures his or her autonomy and shapes his or her individual identity. The nexus between human dignity and privacy is particularly close. Privacy is defined by Gavison as having three elements, which can be effectively summarised with the following three terms - secrecy, solitude and anonymity: Our interest in privacy…is related to our concern over our accessibility to others: the extent to which we are known to others, the extent to which others have physical access to us, and the extent to which we are subject of others' attention.

    Read More

  • Privacy and the Self: Personhood, Autonomy, and Identity

    1980 Words  | 4 Pages

    Privacy can be experienced in a number of forms. Alan Westin defined four states – or experiences – of privacy: solitude, intimacy, anonymity, and reserve. Solitude is a physical separation from others (31). Intimacy is a “close, relaxed, and frank relationship between two or more individuals” resulting from the “corporate [collective] seclusion” of a small unit (31). Anonymity is the “desire of individuals for times of 'public privacy'” (32). Lastly, reserve is the “creation of a psychological barrier against unwanted intrusion [which] occurs when the individual's need to limit communication about himself is protected by the willing discretion of those surrounding around him” (32). It is this last state of privacy that is the most crucial to the preservation of the self. As Robert Murphy observe...

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay: The Dangers Of The Internet

    970 Words  | 2 Pages

    Privacy is a thing of the past because of social media and the internet. Our privacy is not what it used to be. This is due to the carelessness of what we post online and because of the way companies access our information without our full permission. Advertisers have full control on what they do with our personal information, and it is seldom tracked. The internet has truly become a dangerous place. To keep safe, we must be careful of what we post online and who we give our information

    Read More

More about The Pros And Cons Of Privacy Online

Open Document