We took a detailed look at this issue in 2011, and the intersection
of technology and privacy – as predicted – has become more
intricate and pervasive. Put bluntly, for every opportunity the
Internet affords us personally and professionally, there are tradeoffs
in terms of the information we share, willingly or not.
Few consumers would deny that an optimized online shopping
experience, or being able to digitally manage banking or health
records, or customizing content streams, are anything but
welcome and worthwhile developments. Of course, the issue
of control is nothing if not complicated. To enhance how we
interact and exist online, we sacrifice aspects of our privacy and
individuality. Most of us accept that the places we shop, socialize
and work require our personal information. Understanding the
trade-offs is what we give up and how the data is used so online
companies can serve us remains a challenge. And then there are
pros and cons, particularly
the unanticipated ones, of effectively living
our lives online. Facebook has been the best-known real time
case study of the good, the bad and the ugly repercussions of
where personal space meets modern world reality.
In an interesting turn of events, the continuing controversy
involving Edward Snowden illustrates that literally anyone can
be affected by the ways valuable – even top secret – information
is accessed and divulged. Where previous focus has been directed
at how corporations can, or should, handle consumers’ data,
Snowden proves that even matters of national security can
become compromised. In this regard, technology and privacy
transcends consumer electronics and even politics. It’s unlikely
that we’ll arrive at any definitive agreement on how we can, or
should, negotiate this terrain. We live in a world that even George
Orwell could not have foreseen, and he would likely appreciate
the ways innovation has helped democratize (for better or worse)
how information is received and disseminated.