Privacy

 In today's digital age, the question of privacy looms large for all of us. Juan Enriquez's TED Talk, Your Online Life, Permanent as a Tattoo, and Christopher Soghoian's How to Avoid Surveillance... The Phone in Your Pocket highlights the critical intersection of personal data, privacy, and the increasingly inescapable nature of surveillance. Both talks focus on the profound effects of our digital footprint, not just for ourselves but also for our families and society.

Always be mindful of the balance between convenience and safeguarding our privacy, and act responsibly in our digital interactions. Enriquez uses the tattoo analogy to underscore the need for responsible digital interactions. Every social media post, search query, and seemingly innocent interaction leaves a permanent imprint. This permanence affects us, our friends, and our family because, in essence, our online identities are etched into the digital landscape. Whether we like it or not, our past is easily accessible, potentially influencing job opportunities, relationships, and reputations.

As a result, it's challenging for me and those in my circle to disconnect from the online world. This underscores the need to carefully consider any information we share, primarily online, to avoid potential repercussions. The unsettling reality is that a seemingly innocuous post from years ago could resurface to haunt us.

Christopher Soghoian is very anxious about ordinary apparatus, so the threat layer is strange. They are the parts of our appliances, which may be even in our pockets or our handbags. There are civil liberties and integrity of other people that extractions have only an aspect of the contest which we might be towards in looking ahead. How concerned are we? If our whereabouts, speech, subsequent actions, and indeed where we would be according to predictor algorithms are the issues in question.

For my family and friends, this realization means being more selective about the technology they use. Some people have started using encrypted messaging applications or switching off location services to ensure privacy. Nevertheless, the sensation of being "on surveillance" is very offensive and, to some extent, becomes excessive as all about the devices turn to paranoia.

The government is responsible for protecting citizens from exposure, danger, violation, or any privacy breach by developing and implementing adequate and current laws that consider the problematic conditions that prevail in the information era. When it comes to data privacy, regulations should make it compulsory for companies to reveal their data gathering, retention, and dissemination practices so that users remain in control over the use of their data. In addition, there should be a more rigorous threshold connected to the period of data retention by the companies, and independent agencies should be formed to monitor the misuse of the collected data or its unauthorized access or theft. This would ensure individual rights and information protection from being commercially abused when running the business in a risky environment, as everyone's data is enticing meat for different players in the market.

However, when it comes to surveillance by the government, both the transparency of the government and accountability to the law are matters of concern. All surveillance activity must have judicial control to reduce the potential of abuse, and the public should be educated on the extent of activities to promote discussion on the appropriate conditions of existence of the state on security and citizens’ privacy. Covert surveillance is fatal, and the government, the only institution that acts in the name of 'security,' must pre-empt differential treatment of its political ideals and security with individual-based satisfaction. In this manner, governments should respect the right to privacy of the people while at the same time ensuring that their citizens retain confidence in the government institutions that serve them.

We can also do things on a personal level to ensure that our privacy is not compromised. First and foremost, encrypted applications such as Signal should be utilized. App permissions shall be limited, and privacy settings on social network sites will be checked regularly as well. But there are other steps, too. In addition, we should strive for more scrupulous privacy legislation, considering that we all receive digital 'tattoos' in some form and take part in defining the internet. Conclusively, action is needed in this age of unending encroachment into privacy. There's no doubt that technology is of great advantage to humankind. However, there is a need to compromise between technology and respect for privacy.