While all eyes are on the National Security Agency’s bulk collection of data, a thriving economy built on mass consumer surveillance is growing. Companies are collecting information about consumers in order to sell ads more effectively.
Some of the most commonly visited sites use tracking cookies and sophisticated software through third parties to collect information about consumers and sell it to advertisers, often times without the consumer’s permission.
New technologies and a heightened level of sharing on multiple outlets have led to moral and practical dilemmas that confront consumers, the tech industry, retailers, even the government.
Privacy vs. security: Do we have to choose?
After intelligence leaker Edward Snowden sparked a national firestorm regarding the NSA’s bulk gathering of phone records, the privacy vs. security debate heated up, making it clear that Americans have varying priorities.
“Americans understand that we need to give due weight to both privacy and national security. But right now, Americans aren’t getting even the most basic information about what’s going on with the NSA’s surveillance programs, and whether or not their privacy is being violated,” Sen. Al Franken, D-Minnesota, told State of the Union.
President Barack Obama this past week announced a proposal to end the NSA’s program of bulk gathering of telephone call records from private citizens, but the debate over privacy vs. security is far from over.
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She documented her findings in the book “Dragnet Nation: A Quest for Privacy, Security, and Freedom in a World of Relentless Surveillance.”
“Unfortunately, it’s far more difficult to control the data that is transmitted by your smart phone than it is to control the data transmitted by your computer. Smart phones are in constant communication with cell towers, with nearby Wi-Fi points, and the apps may be receiving updates,” Angwin told CNN.
Knowing that being online could put you at risk, do you find a trusty old flip phone, resort to looking things up at your local library and sending letters via the U.S. Postal Service?
Angwin says no.
It is possible to join stay on the grid and use a smart phone while maintaining a certain level of control over the type of information share and who can access it.
In “Dragnet Nation” Angwin shares different experiments as she tried to protect herself from unwanted surveillance, including quitting Google search, using a burner phone and learning about her smart phone’s settings.
