Photo taken by Gwendal Cottin on Unsplash
Last semester, I participated in a Secret Santa. The person I got a gift for is, in a sense, the complete opposite of me. (Think minimalist versus maximalist, literally.) As a result, I ended up buying her gift from a website I never visited before. Soon after, that website flooded my YouTube ads; it was nearly the only ad I ever got on that platform for about a week. I was aware this was caused by my metadata being collected and altering my algorithm, even prior to reading Lindsey Kim’s article which covers this topic, “Understanding And Maintaining Your Privacy When Writing With Digital Technologies.” But I brushed it off as a nuisance that would eventually tide over.
Comfort
My attitude towards information privacy consisted of “What’s the point?” Regardless of how many precautions I take, won’t my metadata be collected and shared at some point? I might as well click away those pesky “Accept All Cookies” pop-ups. To boot, I enjoy getting recommended videos and articles relating to media I like. So, I might as well let my digital activity be shared; it’s comfortable. And I think others hold a similar sentiment, too.
Don’t get me wrong. We certainly care about our privacy online, but mostly when it relates to our immediate, physical safety. For instance, we don’t share our home address on social media for the sake of safety-related privacy. (You wouldn’t want to risk a stalker or creep, would you?) In contrast, my receiving an influx of a certain advertisement because of a gift I bought doesn’t affect my physical safety.
But it could lead to shaping who we are.
Uncomfortable reality
The level of effect a digital environment can have on us wasn’t apparent to me until I read Martha Burtis’ presentation “Messy & Chaotic Learning.” There, she talked about how students behave differently because of the way learning management systems (a digital environment) are built. For example, students will assume an unposted assignment can be dismissed. The system’s effects can even reach as far as influencing the way educators teach. And that made me uncomfortable.
The “filter bubble” that I, and others, had grown accustomed to and enjoyed no longer seemed so harmless. It treaded over to affecting our “physical” safety; it molds us and keeps us in that mold with a tighter grip as it gathers more metadata from us if we’re not cautious. So, I returned to Kim’s article and took her advice. I turned off personalized ads and added Ghostery to my device, and I plan on taking other actions, too. And so should you.
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