Thursday, November 18, 2010

Online Privacy

Every day billions of people log onto the internet to surf the web, shop online, and manage financial accounts as well as to connect with friends and family.  The idea of such things as online banking and online stock trading are easy to do and save most people time from having to go to the bank or their broker’s office, but there is also an easy possibility for hackers to log on and steal that information from you.  For some, stealing a person’s bank log in information or even credit card numbers are just as easy as setting up the online account. 
When thinking of other ways online privacy comes into play, the main thing to think about is that whatever you put on the web, if someone wants to find it, they can.  One major thing these days most college students and sadly some high school students are afraid of is their school finding pictures of them drinking.  Most schools have a policy of no tolerance for drugs and alcohol on campus, and some students do partake in these activities and manage to get away with it.  Know with social media sites, if that student is involved with people doing these things even if they aren’t and someone takes pictures and posts them on their Facebook or Photo bucket account, schools can find them.  In Stonington, CT the board of education began modifying a policy on drugs and alcohol at school events and has expanded it to even out of school events and the weekends.  The major change in this policy is that the students can now be disciplined if they are seen in any of these photos where these illegal acts are taking place.
When I think about the friends I have and the things they put on their personal pages on Facebook, I wonder if they want future bosses or family members to see them hanging over a toilet throwing up.  The sad part is they think these profiles are set to private so no one other than their friends can see.  The realistic part is that if those pictures are posted on a friends profile that is not set to private it becomes very easy to access those photos.  It is also possible for employers to search your name on Google or Bing and find out any information posted about you.  I also wonder why people think that just because they untagged themselves from photos no one unwanted will be able to see them.  Your face and your name are all over the internet and in this day and age the best way to avoid any unwanted information leaking out is to not put it online at all.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Conflict in the Digital Age

War and conflict have been going on since the beginning of human kind.  Conflict between tribes in the Americas turned to wars between countries and the weapons used in war have changed as well. They developed from bow and arrows to riffles to nuclear bombs.  During the scare of the 1950s and 1960s the development of ARPANET, an intelligence network used to try and protect our country as well as a communication source, was the beginning of the internet as we know it.  With that development came the idea of cyber warfare. Bombs and guns are very real and deadly weapons, but being able to shut down an entire country from a complex worm or computer virus can be just as devastating. 
Think about it, air traffic control, sources of electricity and water, medical records, they are all maintained by computers.  Knowing how much I rely on my computer and my iPhone it scares me quite a bit to think of the damage that could be done to my technology.  If I go to the wrong website or open an unknown email it could not only ruin my software, but some viruses now of days can actually ruin the hardware. 

Most of us have a family member or friend that will open any email from sources they don’t know to “get a free vacation,” or join a Facebook group to “win a new designer handbag.” For most cyber warfare victims these actions can sign them up for unwanted spam or their Facebook account may be hacked, but if your friend or family members chooses the wrong one, the creator or the virus could shut down their entire hard drive.  More and more people these days have their financial records, business files and cherished family photos on their computers, so the threat of cyber warfare hits close to home.

In the bigger picture, many countries are struggling with ways to protect their government sites and classified information that can be hacked and leaked, or the bigger fear of being completely shut down.  Last month, a Newsweek article discussed what some countries such as Great Britain are doing to defend themselves from cyber warfare.  Knowing that anyone with an internet connection, in-depth computer knowledge, and a will to do some damage that can affect an entire country or multiple countries scares the living daylights out of me.  I wouldn’t call myself paranoid, but rather a realist.  Waging war is a business and I feel that there are people out there willing to pay good money to cause intense damage to others without ever having to physically shoot a gun or set off a bomb.

As far as protecting yourself from a possible cyber attack the best thing to do is pay attention to what you open on the web.  If you don’t know the source, don’t open it.  Keep in mind that the threat is very real, but it can be avoided if you play it smart.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Digital Divide

With technology changing everyday it is easy to see that there is no way for people to be up to date on new technology as quickly as it is created.  The idea of the Digital Divide is that there is a gap between people that is caused by an inability for access to technology.  This concept is widely accepted, but the idea that people may not be able to connect to the internet or even have a computer is something that in this day and age can affect a person’s quality of life.  In an article written by Joseph Conn, the Digital Divide does just this.  More and more these days, doctors and hospitals are keeping electronic health records or EHR.  With patient records becoming easier to store and access, one can understand why there is a move in this direction.  David Blumenthal, the national coordinator for health IT at HHS has stated that in some clinics dealing mainly with Hispanic and African American patients on Medicare there adoption rate of EHR is lower than other healthcare providers.
Thinking about growing up in a society where computers were always in my home, it is hard to grasp the fact that some people may have never used a computer.  As a young child I can remember playing games like Mario Teaches Typing and using book and CD ROM activity books with my parents to learn reading.  I can also remember getting dial up internet and having to ask my parents permission because we needed a password to log onto AOL.  Thinking back to how much of a pain I thought it was to ask permission, I feel as if I was a bit spoiled now knowing that some children may never have the ability to log online to do homework or chat with friends. 
Think about all the things people use computers with internet connections with today, or even cell phones with internet capability.  Emailing, searching topics, finding maps and restaurant locations and even the simplest thing of connecting to other people.  These simple acts that take us less than minutes to complete are not common or available to all people.  I know that I have Goggled words, events and even historical figures and people in the news that I did not know about in offer to educate myself on the issues.  Why shouldn’t everyone be able to educate themselves on things they do not know? Why shouldn’t someone in the plains of the Serengeti be able to talk to someone in the Australian grasslands about the rainy season or even animal activity? Knowing how the simplest use of the internet can help me in my everyday life I feel that people of all walks of life need to do their part to help close the Digital Divide.  Donate a computer instead of just throwing them out.  This not only helps to preserve the environment, but also helps someone to close their gap in the Digital Divide.

Monday, September 27, 2010

Online Identity (COM 305)

     Many factors determine a person’s identity.  Sex, race, creed, gender and interests are some things that are involved with what shapes identity.  What a person believes to be their identity (reflexive identity) can be different than what others view as their identity to be (ascribed identity).  What someone looks like or acts like in public can often be very different than who they really are.  This identity is hidden to some for fear of ridicule or persecution.  When people feel as if they can’t be who they truly are in society, they often portray their reflexive identity online. 

     In a world of anonymity like the web some people feel it is easier to express their true feelings, beliefs and even genders on the web, rather these things with friends and family. Online identity is also something that people can use to be someone that they are not, nor have even been.  We often hear stories in the news about grown men pretending to be teenage boys in order to meet underage high school girls.  We also hear the stories of people that choose to meet a friend from Second Life or in a chat room that wind up being someone completely different than what was expected.  This example is shown in the upcoming documentary by Henry Joost and Ariel Shulman “Catfish.”
   
     SPOILER ALERT!  The film debuted at last year’s Sundance Film Festival and documents a young man and the online social network friends he has made through his photography.  It also shows just how far off a person’s online identity may be from their ascribed or even their reflexive identity.  No matter how long you may talk to a person, or multiple people online you may never know if they are truly who they say they are.  Knowing how easy it is to set up a Facebook, a Twitter or even how simple it was for me to set up this blog makes it easy to see how so many people steal others identities and make it their online identity.  Within the past year Twitter began giving out “badges” to well known users to assure the authenticity of their identity.  An article by Brad Stone of the New York Times entitled “Keeping a True Identity Becomes a Battle Online”, Stone discusses some ways in which social networking sites are working to prevent online identity fraud and how easily it can happen. 

    Another issue with online identity is what to do if someone has the same name as you? More often than not employers will Google a person or check a Facebook before that interviewee ever walks in for the interview. This is where they go to get their first impression.  If you maintain a professional or noteworthy online identity there is nothing to worry about.  If there are incriminating photos of you on a friend’s page or someone else with the same name is more active online in a negative light, you could be losing your chance at that job.  The key in the maintenance of your online identity is to set up a blog or website that shows off you’re your work.  You can also avoid unwanted tagging or posting of pictures that people paying your salary may find irresponsible.  The moral of the story for online identity is you can be who you are or who you want people to think you are but you need to make sure that which ever you choose people will still judge by it.