At this very moment, an exasperated parent and sarcastic teenager are having a petty argument about the Internet. It is a terse conversation that goes something like this:
“Don’t talk to strangers on the internet!”
I know, Mom!
The parent shakes their head before storming off, and the teenager – with a quick eye-roll – continues their Discord group call with their online friends.
For generations of digital natives – Millennials, Gen Z-ers and Gen Alphas – this is as far as their education about digital privacy will take them. It is a complex mix of having the advanced technological knowledge that comes from growing up with screens, while simultaneously not being aware of how much agency they relinquish within digital spaces. Indeed, they are informed about collecting data from facial recognition software, yet they are apt to use trendy Instagram filters. They despise targeted advertisements plastered on websites, yet they blindly click the “Accept All Cookies” button to make that annoying pop-up go away.
In this wireless society, high-tech efficiency has become the norm. We place such a high value on this simplification that we are unaware of how it affects how we view our digital agency. Understanding the problematic effects of this overload of oversimplification starts with a clear picture of how we view our online privacy.
Defining Privacy by Pixels
As computers became prevalent in every household, Internet safety became a concern, especially for children. The focus of early Internet safety models was on privacy, which has not changed in modernity. However, these models directly translated traditional ideas of privacy to the digital realm. Lindsey C. Kim, a PhD candidate at the University of South Carolina, describes this older idea of privacy in her work “Understanding and Maintaining Your Privacy When Writing with Digital Technologies”. In this essay, Kim describes an instance where she must close the door in her room in order to write without interruptions. This is referred to as spatial privacy, where one uses their physical space to be undisturbed. Spatial privacy is society’s traditional idea of privacy. When creating these Internet safety models, people believed that what we know about spatial privacy should be applicable to the online world. Unfortunately, this perspective limits the complexity of finding privacy within the Internet.
When Keeping It Simple Keeps You Stupid
In this high-tech era, humans strive to be as efficient as possible. Instead of writing your paper by hand, you can type it on Google Docs. Instead of using toilet paper, you can use that powerful new bidet. Efficient technologies get whatever you need done fast, which leaves you with plenty of time to…look at TikToks, I suppose.
Undoubtedly, technology has become a useful tool in society that is only evolving. Still, there is a growing concern that what was once a tool to aid and supplement our lifestyle is now becoming the lifestyle. Over time, efficiency has started to overshadow personal agency, which is, as Kim describes, “the ability to produce an effort through your actions”. With agency, you exert influence over how you disclose information, if you do, and how it is used. In the physical world, you are the monarch of your agency. In the digital world, however, you are a mere peasant.
Wait, How?
Whether it is unintentional or not, every click, scroll or general networked activity creates traceable data. You might think, “Hey, but I always choose to decline that annoying ‘cookies’ pop-up whenever I click on a website!” Yes, it is good that you have the desire to maintain your digital privacy by having this awareness of how websites store metadata. Despite your wishes, opting out of collecting non-essential cookies, as technology journalist Thomas Germain found, does not stop websites from collecting your data. Also, cookies are not the only way your data is collected. Using cool Snapchat filters, searching for information about a weird rash and connecting to Wi-Fi adds to your data trail. You are often presented with the illusion of digital agency in your daily web-based decisions. Privacy and agency make way for conglomerates that use your data for the sake of selling “efficient” products and services.
By limiting your agency, these conglomerates indirectly influence your decisions and beliefs by presenting you with targeted advertising and biased perspectives. This is all for the alleged sake of streamlining your digital experience. Quickly, the land of pixelated discoveries becomes a marketing battleground fueled by profit. In layman’s terms, corporate greed is trying to stupefy you.
Finding Agency in Educational Spaces
Plymouth State University’s digital studies scholar Martha Fay Burtis notes the impact of corporate profiteering on agency within higher education. In her 2017 presentation at Keene State College, Burtis recalls a time where her peers wondered if why they should incorporate digital humanities into curricula. Instead of furthering conversations about digital citizenship and agency, schools embrace the profitable, efficient business model of learning management systems (LMS), like Canvas. It was once a tool for educators and students to share content. Now, it has evolved into a full-on digital school, complete with a gradebook, online quizzes and discussion boards. Schools that adopt an LMS carry certain expectations, rules and norms that students and educators blindly follow.
These tools can be helpful when used as a supplement for learning. An educator, for instance, uploading a twenty-seven page reading to the class shell offers better access to students. The issue comes when they are treated as substitutions for learning. An overachieving student panics when she cannot see her grades and is unsure of her standing in the class. Another student manages to turn off his class shell’s push notifications, so that he feels no guilt to slack off. In a sense, there becomes such a thing as technology being too efficient. When the learning revolves around whether or not the professor uploaded last week’s reading, it hinders students’ agency.
Taking Back Your Agency
It sounds too simple. After reading this, it feels pointless to attempt to grasp agency. After all, web developers and corporations will find their way to get the data they want. You can reclaim and maintain your personal agency. It starts by understanding what data is being collected, who is collecting it and how it is being collected. Yes, that means reading the Terms and Conditions (Kim recommends this nifty website to help navigate the legalese). Being well-informed about your digital privacy and agency goes beyond being a responsible netizen. It recognizes that simplification comes at a cost of living.
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