Online Privacy

Within a week of signing up for Facebook, one doctor I know received a friend request from a name he didn’t recognize. Then, it dawned on him, the potential “friend” was one of his patients. Most professors can share a similar story of friend requests from students and the thinking that goes into the decision to accept. Do I want to remain accessible and open up new channels of communication with trainees? Or do I want to maintain a private life online?

One way to tackle this dilemma is to realize that the whole notion of privacy on the Internet is antiquated. Even when you think you are erecting walls to protect your personal data, new technologies are poking holes in those protections. For example:

  • Do you ever log on to a social media site from Starbucks? Most wireless connections do not encrypt all the information you send to your account. A new browser extension, Firesheep, collects log ins from those around you and lets you impersonate them online.
  • You may think your personal information is safe when you reject a friend request on Facebook. A new feature, however, makes it harder to reject a request outright. The first option is to accept a request or “not now.” Clicking “not now” removes the request from the screen, but still allows the person to see parts of your profile unless you hit a second button to reject them outright.
  • Facebook does make it possible to control information through privacy settings. But to do so requires checking 170 different options in 50 separate categories. Increasingly, the default position is to allow more access to your data. This graph nicely illustrates how much of your information is automatically revealed if you don’t take proactive steps.
  • So you think you’ll outsmart Facebook by keeping a barebones profile just so you can have access to your friends’ postings. Even with no data to go on, Facebook can triangulate information about you using your friends’ profiles and target you with specific ads.

So, it may be a false choice whether to accept the patient’s or student’s request as a friend. They and others can still find out about you on-line. One option is to join a privacy-centered social media site like Diaspora. More realistically, just assume that everything you post will be visible, and surf accordingly.

Tags:

29 Responses to “Online Privacy”

  1. Heya just wanted to give you a quick heads up and let you know a few of the images aren’t loading properly. I’m not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different web browsers and both show the same results.

  2. metasearch says:

    Keep up the great works guys I’ve added you guys to my blogroll.

  3. I really enjoy examining on this internet site , it holds great content .

  4. *There are a couple of intriguing points at some point on this page but I do not know if all of them center to heart. You can find some validity but I will take hold opinion until I take a look at it further. Good post , thanks and now we want a lot more! Added to FeedBurner as well

  5. *After study many of the web sites on your website now, i truly appreciate your method of blogging. I bookmarked it to my bookmark website list and will be checking back soon. Pls take a look at my web site also and make me aware how you feel.

  6. Get Credit says:

    I wish to express my gratitude for your kind-heartedness in support of men and women who actually need assistance with in this niche. Your personal commitment to passing the message all around appeared to be astonishingly effective and have always allowed guys and women like me to get to their goals. Your personal warm and helpful guide signifies a whole lot a person like me and a whole lot more to my peers. Thanks a ton; from all of us.

  7. Hello There. I discovered your weblog with the use of msn. That is a very smartly written article about %BLOGTITLE%. I will be sure to bookmark it and come back to learn extra of your helpful information. Thank you a million and please carry on the gratifying work and by the way why dont you also check out the <a href=http://venthoodreviews.com>vent hood reviews probably you will also be curious into it

  8. sex shop says:

    I’m commenting to make you understand of the fine experience my wife’s princess developed studying your webblog. She figured out a good number of pieces, not to mention how it is like to have an ideal helping heart to make other folks without problems know several tortuous matters. You really did more than our desires. Thank you for distributing those informative, trusted, explanatory and in addition fun tips on your topic to Jane.

  9. Atlanta Interior Design says:

    I enjoyed reading through and i think this website has some really usefull stuff on it!

  10. Thank you so much for providing individuals with an extremely spectacular possiblity to discover important secrets from this web site. It’s usually so pleasurable plus stuffed with a lot of fun for me and my office colleagues to visit your blog at a minimum 3 times in 7 days to study the fresh stuff you will have. Not to mention, we are always fascinated concerning the unique concepts served by you. Selected 2 facts in this posting are clearly the most efficient I’ve ever had.

  11. I definitely wanted to write down a brief word to be able to express gratitude to you for the stunning guides you are sharing on this site. My time consuming internet research has now been honored with good quality points to write about with my close friends. I ‘d express that many of us site visitors are truly lucky to be in a notable site with so many outstanding people with very helpful pointers. I feel quite fortunate to have encountered the site and look forward to so many more thrilling moments reading here. Thank you once more for everything.

  12. My wife and i ended up being quite comfortable Jordan managed to carry out his analysis through the entire ideas he discovered out of the weblog. It’s not at all simplistic to just choose to be making a gift of information and facts which men and women could have been making money from. We recognize we now have the writer to appreciate for that. Most of the explanations you have made, the straightforward site navigation, the relationships your site make it possible to promote – it’s got mostly superb, and it is helping our son and the family reckon that that subject is exciting, which is incredibly mandatory. Thanks for the whole lot!

  13. Many thanks for your post. I’d really like to say that the expense of car insurance varies widely from one insurance plan to another, for the reason that there are so many different facets which bring about the overall cost. As an example, the model and make of the vehicle will have a significant bearing on the price. A reliable old family auto will have a lower priced premium than just a flashy fancy car.

  14. What saves a man is to take a step. Then another step. It is always the same step but you have to take it.

  15. here says:

    I intended to post you one little bit of remark so as to say thank you as before relating to the amazing principles you have provided in this article. It’s quite unbelievably generous with you in giving unreservedly precisely what a lot of people might have sold as an e book in making some cash on their own, primarily considering that you might well have tried it if you ever desired. The smart ideas also served as the easy way to fully grasp many people have the same dreams just as mine to grasp a little more in regard to this condition. I believe there are many more pleasant moments ahead for many who read through your site.

  16. You are a great writer, I should visit usually.

  17. Hmm….. Great write-up, I’m regular visitor of one’s blog, maintain up the nice operate, and It’s going to be a regular visitor for a long time. “Our opinions do not really blossom into fruition until we have expressed them to someone else.” by Mark Twain…

  18. Kim Sheeley says:

    Sites we love…… […] Are you clearly convinced that is definitely the right information? I learned something else entirely. I’ve basically had an additional theory that pop right into my mind […]…

  19. Cars says:

    I like what you guys are doing. Such smart work and reporting! Carry on with the superb works guys. I’ve incorporated you guys to my blogroll. I think it’ll improve the value of my web site. 🙂

  20. I loved as much as you’ll obtain carried out right here. The comic strip is tasteful, your authored material stylish. nonetheless, you command get got an edginess over that you wish be handing over the following. sick for sure come further formerly again since exactly the similar just about a lot ceaselessly inside of case you shield this hike.

  21. I think other web site owners should take this site as an model – very clean and fantastic style and design, as well as the content. You’re an expert in this topic!

  22. Blog Xing, add your blogs here: http://www.blogxing.ru

  23. The weak point of this solution is that in most of member states, police is not an institution entitled to fight and prevent terrorism. Institutions entitled to do so, can be described, depending on country, inner intelligence or secret service (for example BfV in Germany, DCRI in France, ABW in Poland or Mi-5/Special Branch in the UK).

  24. After having presented the theoretical background, of what I understand by “new authoritarianism” (neoauthoritarianism) and “new authoritarian tendencies” I would like to present a short case study of France and Russia. In those cases I will described the political aspects of new forms of authoritarianism and will try to find reasons for such a situation in both societies.

  25. Henry Drinen says:

    There are some fascinating cut-off dates on this article but I don’t know if I see all of them middle to heart. There’s some validity however I’ll take maintain opinion until I look into it further. Good article , thanks and we want more! Added to FeedBurner as well

  26. I think one of your current advertisements initiated my web browser to resize, you may well want to set that on your blacklist.

  27. BUGGY says:

    Slovakia for example got totally cut off from gas supplies, because Russia is its only supplier of this fuel. This crisis however is not relevant for this comment, because it did not affect Slovakia, for slovak supply lines from Russia go mainly through Belarus (84%).

  28. With the crisis and after several years making gifts for the downturn of work, economic gains and customers, a web designer has come up with given the opportunity to donate the earnings of their design services websites animal rights to help such as Animanaturalis.org, PETA.ORG (People for the etical treatment for animals), Animalequality.net, etc…

    It’s just another way to help animals in addition to donating money or spreading.

    This is another new form of donations … Of course extrapolated to any charity campaign: Instead of making direct financial donations, providing 100% the fare is donated to animal rights NGOs. Barter. As a kind of cash converters, but in this case would be a “animalhelp converters” in the services sector, already incidentally, there are cash converters (with donations of objects) that markets are called beneficials, but in the service sector, is something completely new, and correct me if I’m wrong …. Some people prefer our money goes to good causes, and not go you know what or whom.

    Mary
    http://paginasweb.org.es/