In today’s world, the Internet pervades every aspect of life, from smartphones to streaming video and beyond. With that power, however, comes the dangers of making one's lives and personal information nakedly transparent for all to see (Livingstone, 2008). In order to deal with issues of privacy of information in the United States, a greater emphasis needs to be placed on using social networking to connect people and make media literacy a greater priority, while still keeping this vital information private. Maintaining vigilance in the light of an age of oversharing and a false sense of safety is paramount; new laws, new technologies, and the encouragement of safer personal practices can accomplish these goals and more. Although people like to use social networking to become more connected to each other, companies and unwanted parties might be able to access your privacy information, which remains a huge problem.
There are those who might feel as though the lack of privacy is not a huge issue; they like to use social networking despite these dangers. Social networking allows them to access other people's information, learn their likes, interests and relationships to others - this grants these users a feeling of community and satisfaction (Felt and Evans, 2008). Others may also enjoy the corporate aspect of social media privacy issues, since targeted marketing based on their interests and activity leads them to products they might be interested in purchasing anyway. All of these are reasons to accept the current state of privacy in social media.
Despite the fact that social networking draws people into worlds of connectivity, privacy is actually a legitimate and frightening issue. When sites like Facebook place a value on the sheer number of friends you have, it can be easy to let anyone in to see your timeline or messages (Felt and Evans, 2008). Often, the drive to express your daily life through Facebook status updates or tweets can be so great that it can expose information about yourself to anyone who dares to listen. Add to that the option of reporting and "checking in" to wherever you are, and Facebook can literally track you down to where you are at that moment (Livingstone, 2008). This is a dangerous prospect to consider, especially since companies and third-party organizations will often sell your private information and search histories to the highest bidder (Barnes, 2006). While the computer itself may allow you to work and communicate in physical privacy, the actual information you provide, whether inadvertent or not, is still very easy to access (Felt and Evans, 2008).
There are three types of solutions that can be implemented to help keep people's information confidential and identities anonymous - social, technical and legal solutions (Barnes, 2006). In terms of social solutions, the responsibility lies with parents to help regulate children's access to Facebook and other social networking sites - they need to involve themselves more radically with their kids' Internet usage, and understand the technology better in order to make themselves available. Schools are also said to play a huge part in keeping this information private - having their own social networking policies for on-site computing helps somewhat, limiting students' access to non-productive sites like social networking services (Felt and Evans, 2008). However, there is more that can be done on the school level towards educating students and social networking users on media literacy through social networking and the maintenance of privacy (Barnes, 2006). Continuing the aforementioned privacy policies is a good idea, but privacy and media literacy courses designed to inform people how their information is used and accessed on Facebook could equip individuals with greater tools to keep themselves safe.
Finally, legal solutions to the privacy problem include initiatives like the Deleting Online Predators Act (DOPA) (Barnes, 2006). This act mandates Internet filters to be placed in school-located computer libraries, which would limit access to social networking sites. However, despite the good intentions of this bill, further action is needed to protect privacy. Given the aforementioned benefits of social networking, complete censorship is not the answer; instead, students must be given the ability to police themselves (Livingstone, 2008). Becoming educated on what can happen to them on social networking, instead of allowing them to find out the hard way, permits them to exercise caution when participating in activities on social networks. This grants the user with a greater level of confidence, as well as the freedom to enjoy the media literacy, interconnectivity, and sociopolitical power that social networking has to offer.
In conclusion, despite the enthusiasm some may have for the advantages and connection social networking provides people, initiatives have to be taken at the social, technical and legal levels in order to handle privacy problems. The media and information potential of social networking, both for interpersonal communication and mass culture aggregation, is staggering; it would be foolish to leave it unprotected, along with the private information of those who seek to use it. With the help of personal codes of ethics, greater software applications and more vigilant legislation, social media can be utilized safely and effectively to expand our understanding of each other.
Works Cited
Susan B. Barnes "A privacy paradox: Social networking in the United States". First Monday, vol. 11., no. 9, Sep. 4, 2006. <http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/viewArticle/1394/131 2.> Web.
Felt, Adrienne, and David Evans. "Privacy protection for social networking apis." 2008 Web 2.0 Security and Privacy (W2SP’08) (2008). Print.
Livingstone, Sonia. "Taking risky opportunities in youthful content creation: teenagers' use of social networking sites for intimacy, privacy and self-expression." New media & society, vol. 10, no. 3, 2008, pp. 393-411. Print.
