Are we compromising our privacy over the Internet?

June 25th, 2013

Peter Nolan

Internet is a giant entity, as we all know, embracing millions of networking devices and destinations or terminating nodes. Equally large is the amount of information flow over it because of the increased dependency of a large part of the population. This transformation into a virtual life raises various issues related to the identification of a user transferring information over the internet. To overcome these issues under such scenarios, most of the websites collect the data related to a visitor like their IP Addresses, location and any other information they provide. This collection of visitor information helps businesses to keep a track on the activity of a visitor and moreover, helps them in developing their business with the rising trend of internet businesses.

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The darker side of data collection is that data mapping results into uncovering of personal information of a visitor over the internet, resulting into other associated issues like identity theft or loss of financial or any other confidential information. The numbers of cyber-attacks are also increasing exponentially in recent years which could become a threat for the privacy of a user due to localization of user’s information. A number of successful hacking attempts happened last year like the famous LinkedIn hack which unveiled different user IDs and passwords was the result of dilute privacy measures for users.

The mix of business policies and internet issues is certainly changing the definition of privacy in today’s technologically advanced generation. Increasing number of information sources further drive the effort of information mapping to produce a meaningful and insightful data using various big data technologies.

A recent happening about the collection of call records about various users of Verizon mobile operator unveiled by Edward Snowden is one of the finest examples of privacy intrusion, even by government agencies like NSA. Another famous example is the ban put on a communication app Viber, in Saudi Arabia, when a regulatory member of the concerned department showed his concern about the monitoring of information from these applications. While the owners of these companies i.e. Viber or WhatsApp are not ready to compromise the privacy of their users, the government agencies on the other hand want to monitor and look into the activities of individuals under their jurisdiction.

Though government agencies seem to be reluctant about rolling back their decisions on monitoring of data over the networks, agencies are also working to provide a measure for users to know about what related information is being tracked by the service providing companies. California legislature is working to provide a long-overdue bill known as “The Right to Know Act” which would allow the users to know exactly what information about their individuality as a user is being tracked by the companies. Moreover, this bill would allow the government agencies and users to maintain a balance between their activities and privacy over the web for building a secure yet transparent information flow.

Source Article from http://www.examiner.com/article/are-we-compromising-our-privacy-over-the-internet?cid=rss