Does Privacy Exist in Online Spaces

To understand what individuals think about privacy; whether it still exists online or whether they care about what happens with their data, four interviews were conducted. The interviewees will be referred to as Participant A, B, C and D.

 

All four participants said they highly valued their privacy, primarily because;

 

‘I would like to decide what people know about me, I want control over my personal information and how it is shared; this isn’t possible without privacy’

(Participant A 2015).

 

All participants used Google as their only search engine, three of the four used Facebook and two interviewees also used Instagram and Snapchat. However none of the participants read the privacy policies before using these platforms and they do not use any kind of online privacy protection.

 

Participants had mixed responses when asked how they felt about their digital data and behaviour being sold to markers for the purpose of targeted advertising and differential pricing.

Participant A (2015) commented;

 

‘It’s unfair that individuals are treated differently based on the data collected’.

 

 In contrast, Participant B (2015) said

 

‘I don’t think my purchasing habits are valuable information, but I would be concerned if it affected me personally’.

 

While Participant D (2015) noted that they didn’t really feel as though they could ‘escape it; it’s just part of the internet’.

 

Perhaps the most surprising responses came from the question ‘do you care’.

Participant A (2015) was concerned and interested to learn more about how our data is used and Participant D (2015) also cared, but recognised that the cost of using digital resources was our privacy. Participant B, cared, but didn’t see how it would hurt them and Participant C (2015) said:

 

‘It doesn’t bother me because I don’t see how it affects me. They have no information that could affect me badly; my internet footprint is clean’  

 

These comments are of interest because they relate to Bruce Schneier’s argument that, ‘Privacy is not about having something to hide. Privacy is about human dignity. Privacy is about individuality. Privacy is about being able to decide when and how we show ourselves to other people’ (Alberici 2015). Thus the stories shared by Participant B and C can be understood with reference to Schneier’s research as highlighting an ignorance of the impact that digital surveillance has on privacy.

 

While the interviewees all care about their privacy, they don’t understand the implications that digital data surveillance is having on privacy in the digital space or how this relates to them and their personal information. This goes to explaining why the participants express significant concerns about privacy in general but do not offer the same level of consideration about privacy as it relates to their online presence.

 

When asked what they would like to see happen with this research, the participants all said that they would like more information about the issue of digital data surveillance and greater awareness of how this erosion of privacy affects them as consumers and individuals. These responses highlight the participant’s recognition of their ignorance and their desire to better understand the relationship between privacy and their presence in the digital space. 

 

The Facebook case study was designed to work towards achieving the participant’s goal of greater awareness.