Data, Privacy, & Software
One of the first things I noticed as I opened my laptop to begin this assignment was a notification from my laptop. The McAfee app informed me that my computer is “at risk” because my free trial had expired. It made me think about how much software programs value protection and privacy online. The internet is a fascinating, efficient, yet dangerous place. It is the melting pot for online users in the modern age to communicate. Personal data and information can easily be accessed in many ways, as the digital world is so grand and peculiar. It is important to have a way to protect your private information.
Multiple services provide protection for your data so that you may utilize the internet more safely, like the aforementioned McAfee. Lindsey Kim’s chapter on information privacy gives a clear insight for students about how to protect their information when composing a piece of writing for a digital outlet. Kim explains the importance of online privacy through three core concepts; data, agency, and flow. These concepts are extremely vital to understanding how privacy works, as well as how to navigate the internet when writing for an online audience.
A Crucial Example
I believe that as the digital age has persisted, we humans have over-consumed the internet. It has reached a point where the word “digital” itself carries a world of meanings. Privacy is an extremely important factor now more than ever. Users all around the world have contributed to the power and accessibility on the internet as it has expanded. It even has become somewhat political in the United States, with the recent legal battle over TikTok. Investigators heavily researched this platform to determine the safety of its users’ private information. The absolute uproar caused by the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold a ban on the app is a wonderful example of how online users rarely caution themselves to protect their privacy on the internet. TikTok is a massive digital space, where internet users compose media for an online audience.
All three of Kim’s concepts are applicable to TikTok. Users must know how their data on the app is collected, how to maintain agency over the use of their data, and how their information flows across the app. Without knowing these three concepts, users will be careless on the app. This could potentially lead to the control and spread of excessive data they create from the app across the platform either without their consent, or without them even being aware. The political aspect of the TikTok situation is an entirely different subject. However, the debate itself is over whether the app is consuming data against users’ consent. It is vital, even with TikTok, to protect private information. Yet, TikTok users ultimately outraged, “I don’t care if they take my data.” All they wanted was to utilize this digital space for their personal enjoyment.
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