LK Blog Feature: Facebook is Watching You; does Privacy exist Online?

                                                                    

The Internet. It's part of nearly every aspect of our lives. Your coursework, your new holiday photos, the details of a meeting with your friends, your most personal aspirations. Essentially, you. 

But it's safe, private, here. Isn't it?

 The Internet knows more about you than it lets on. Facebook records every single thing you do on their website, and each website it is affiliated with, for example YouTube. Facebook uses this information about you to provide specific advertising, but think how easily this could be hacked into and used for more malicious purposes.

Facebook founder Zuckerberg himself said that the 'Age of privacy is over'

But how much personal information do you really unwittingly share with everyone and anyone?

“We are building a web where the default is social” - Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook 'F8' conference, April 21st 2010.

The Facebook privacy policy has seen some startling changes since it's creation in 2004, seeing the gradual growth of information that is shared with everyone by default with each policy review. In fact, how you change who sees what is described  as "This ... procedure is confusing, unclear, and you might even say hidden." by US senator Charles Schumer.


So who sees what on Facebook? We've all posted the odd comment or photo that we would rather some people not see. But what if they can?

Work places seem to be spying on us online. 1 in 10 employees complain about their bosses online, and as many as 20% check applicant's Facebook profiles before hiring. In fact, a great number of employers have been fired for their comments on Facebook. Ashely Johnson, a waitress from North Carolina, complained about customers at the Pizza resteraunt where she worked. Her post on Facebook was spotted by her employers and she was informed thar she would be losing her job for breaking the company policy about speaking disparagingly about restaurant customers and portraying the outlet in a bad light on social networking sites.

"It was my own fault, I did write the message. But I had no idea that something that, to me is very small, could result in my losing my job … I lost my job because of a Facebook status."


Google also has some of you up its sleeve. Everything that you type into the search engine is stored.
Ask.com has given users the choice of using the 'Ask Eraser', a tool that will bin queries soon after you have made them. Google, however, will not be doing something anytime soon, as some of their many uses for the information they have acquired is used to power the 'Did you mean' spell checker and, once again, advertising.


What else does the interenet know about you?

• Google Streetview - a perfect stakeout for theives
• NHS Files - All your personal health details, just for the docs to see... or is it?
• Twitter - Same thing as Facebook, except now everyone can see what you say, and indexed by search engines aswell.

So, now we know something about what the internet knows about us.
Stay safe online, and dont forget...

Big Brother is Watching YOU.



Thanks for reading, guys.
Don't worry, the people hurting themselves on Yotube will be back soon.


Read more:

How to put Facebook on privacy lockdown  - a handy guide
Openbook - a website demonstrating the flaws of Facebook's 'Openbook' idea, in which everyone's status updates are shared with the world.
Hate School? Don't tell Facebook - Think you can speak freely about your school on Facebook? Think again.
Scroogle - a Google alternative that didn't see anything, right?
How to protect your privacy on Twitter - a handy guide

Please ask for permission before republishing credited text and/or the 'Watching You' , 'Google you', 'F?', and 'You will like this' graphics at thelkblog@gmail.com. Thanks.