Evgeny Morozov on Why Our Privacy Problem is a Democracy Problem in Disguise | MIT Technology Review


As Web companies and government agencies analyze ever more information about our lives, it’s tempting to respond by passing new privacy laws or creating mechanisms that pay us for our data. Instead, we need a civic solution, because democracy is at risk.

Snip: “When all citizens demand their rights but are unaware of their responsibilities, the political questions that have defined democratic life over centuries—How should we live together? What is in the public interest, and how do I balance my own interest with it?—are subsumed into legal, economic, or administrative domains. “The political” and “the public” no longer register as domains at all; laws, markets, and technologies displace debate and contestation as preferred, less messy solutions.

But a democracy without engaged citizens doesn’t sound much like a democracy—and might not survive as one.”

A lengthy but thought provoking read on the right to privacy and democracy. Read: Evgeny Morozov on Why Our Privacy Problem is a Democracy Problem in Disguise | MIT Technology Review.

 

Alessandro Acquisti: Why privacy matters | TED.com


The line between public and private has blurred in the past decade, both online and in real life, and Alessandro Acquisti is here to explain what this means and why it matters. In this thought-provoking, slightly chilling talk, he shares details of recent and ongoing research — including a project that shows how easy it is to match a photograph of a stranger with their sensitive personal information.What motivates you to share your personal information online? Alessandro Acquisti studies the behavioral economics of privacy and information security in social networks.

via Alessandro Acquisti: Why privacy matters | Video on TED.com.

Jaron Lanier Discusses Big Data, Privacy at NYPL LIVE Event | The Digital Shift


The original developers of network technology wanted to democratize access to information, but while networks have succeeded in improving access, the ways in which governments and corporations are now gathering and using personal data has been an unfortunate consequence, argued author and computer science pioneer Jaron Lanier during a LIVE from the New York Public Library (NYPL) event on October 10. In a wide-ranging interview with NYPL’s Director of Public Programs Paul Holdengräber, Lanier also discussed the role that libraries play as people find it increasingly difficult to keep information about themselves private.

Read the full story: Jaron Lanier Discusses Big Data, Privacy at NYPL LIVE Event | The Digital Shift.

3M Cloud Patron “Buy and Donate”; No Anonymity in Facebook Search; Nye, NASA YouTube Jupiter Series; Making Makerspaces


Patrons can donate to their library via new 3M Cloud feature. 3M Cloud Library Introduces “Buy and Donate” Program Supported by Kobo | TMCnet.com

Privacy setting removed for good. Now anyone can find you on Facebook — no matter what | CNET.

Love science? Want to learn more? Bill Nye, NASA Team Up for Jupiter Mission YouTube Series | PCMAG.com

Creating a makerspace is not that hard according to School Library Journal. Low Tech, High Gains: Starting a Maker Program Is Easier Than You Think | The Digital Shift

How to Make Your Entire Internet Life More Secure in One Day | LifeHacker


How to Make Your Entire Internet Life More Secure in One Day | LifeHacker

How to guides for:

  • Encrypting your email
  • Encrypting your chat conversations
  • Using secure backups and file syncing
  • Hiding your web traffic
  • Using a password manager
  • Using two-factor authentication

Hiding Your Online Activity News Links, Infographic


This Graphic Shows How to Keep Your Browsing, Email, and Chats Private | LifeHacker

Tips for Keeping Your Internet Usage Private

The 10 Governments That Requested (And Got) The Most Facebook User Data | Co.Exist


74 countries sought data from Facebook for 38,000 of the network’s total 1.15 billion users.

Requests for Facebook data made from Jan to June 2013 (some requests include multiple users):

  1. United States (11,000-12,000 requests, 79% success)
  2. India (3,245 requests, 50% success)
  3. United Kingdom (1,975 requests, 68%success)
  4. Germany (1,886 requests, 37% success)
  5. Italy (1,705 requests, 53% success)
  6. France (1,574 requests, 39% success)
  7. Brazil (715 requests, 33% success)
  8. Australia (546 requests, 64% success)
  9. Spain (479 requests, 51% success)
  10. Poland (233 requests, 9% success)

The full discussion: The 10 Governments That Requested (And Got) The Most Facebook User Data | Co.Exist | ideas + impact.

Pew: 86% Of U.S. Adults Make Efforts To Hide Their “Digital Footprints” Online; Fear Of Creeping Ads And Malicious Hackers Outweighs State Spy Worries | TechCrunch


As surveyed by the Pew Research Center, the average U.S. citizen appears to be more concerned about the data collecting abilities of advertising networks like those of Google and Facebook, faceless malicious hackers, and even friends and family, than they are the government.

See the full discussion of the research findings: Pew: 86% Of U.S. Adults Make Efforts To Hide Their “Digital Footprints” Online; Fear Of Creeping Ads And Malicious Hackers Outweighs State Spy Worries | TechCrunch.

Governments Requested Information On 38,000 Facebook Users In The First Half Of 2013 | Fast Company


Facebook received about 38,000 data requests from government agents in 71 countries in the first half of 2013, according to the company’s first Global Government Requests Report, which it published [Tuesday]. The report comprises both criminal and national security requests made in the first six months of the year, with half of those requests coming from the United States.

via Governments Requested Information On 38,000 Facebook Users In The First Half Of 2013 | Fast Company | Business + Innovation.

Links for Recent Pew Research News


Pew: 30% Of U.S. Adults Don’t Have Broadband; 10% Use Smartphones As Sole Internet Access; 20% Have Zilch | TechCrunch – August 26, 2013
Pew Research…releas[ed] the results of a survey that shows how one of the more advanced countries in the world, the U.S., is still not quite there in leading by example: 20% of U.S. adults are still without broadband or smartphones for internet access. And 3% of people in the country still using dial-up connections.

The below link is related the same Pew research results as the article above but provides discussion on a different perspective – the digital divide in America.  See the original Home Broadband 2013 Pew report – August 26, 2013.

Latest Pew Study Shows 70 Percent of U.S. Has Broadband. But Access Is Still Unequal | Wired.com – August 26, 2013
Pew’s results demonstrate that the digital divide is persistent, with close correlations between socioeconomic status and home Internet access. The report is also a reminder that policymakers use the words “high-speed broadband” to include everything other than dialup access, which is far too broad a definition.

Adult Trend Data | Pew Internet 
Latest data about device ownership by American adults up to end-May 2013.

Pew Study: More millennials are living with their parents than ever before | Stephen’s Lighthouse | August 22, 2013
According to a Pew poll, 36 percent of young adults are afflicted with Failure to Launch syndrome.

Teens say they generally rely on themselves to figure out how to manage their privacy online | Stephen’s Lighthouse – August 22, 2013
Teens say they generally rely on themselves to figure out how to manage their privacy online; Still, 70% of teens have at one time sought advice about how to manage their privacy online. See the Pew Internet report from August 15, 2013.

Teens and Mobile Apps Privacy | Pew Internet – August 22, 2013
As teens gain access to mobile devices, they have embraced app downloading. But many teen apps users have taken steps to uninstall or avoid apps over concern about their privacy. Location information is considered especially sensitive to teen girls, as a majority of them have disabled location tracking features on cell phones and in apps because they are worried about others’ access to that information.

Teens Haven’t Abandoned Facebook (Yet) | Pew Internet – August 15, 2013
When we released our “Teens, Social Media and Privacy” report in May, one thread of news coverage focused on teens’ “waning enthusiasm” for Facebook. This theme surfaced during our focus group discussions with teens and stood in contrast to the excitement that was associated with newer platforms like Instagram and Twitter.