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Ask HN: What's a good response to “It's fine, I've got nothing to hide online”?

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Re: Ask HN: What's a good response to “It's fine, I've got nothing to hide online”?

#81

Post by metaloha »

capnrefsmmat wrote: post #50

I think most people here are missing the point. You need not convince them that they do have something to hide, or that other people have good reasons for hiding things. The key point is that you do not get to decide if you have something to hide . When you share data extensively with companies or the government, they now have the power to use it to make decisions about you. They may use that power in ways you disagr…

The issue at it's most fundamental level is that people are putting things on Facebook (and other social networks) with an expectation of privacy in the first place. If you post something on Facebook, you have in fact decided that you do not have something to hide.

I care about my privacy, but everything I've put on Facebook is public as far as I'm concerned. I don't care that they are using that information to profile me and serve ads for things I might like because I posted there with full knowledge of that. If I want something to be private, I don't put it on Facebook (or other social networks).

Re: Ask HN: What's a good response to “It's fine, I've got nothing to hide online”?

#82

Post by rabboRubble »

I always say "Oh, you might not, but some day somebody you love might find themselves in trouble, and your transparency may harm them. Example, if your kid says they were with you as an alibi when accused of a crime, but your Facebook profile says you were in Hawaii, your kid might be in serious trouble.

We also know that the government has stated in Congressional hearings they make networks of 6 degrees of separation. You might not be doing anything wrong but just happen to find yourself 2 degrees removed from a major child porn investigation. God forbid the way you connect to those awful people seems interesting to prosecutors. They will be so far up your backside, you will be tasting the law. Even if you are innocent, your life will be ruined with legal fees and you will be shunned by your community. This is my worst case scenario."

Re: Ask HN: What's a good response to “It's fine, I've got nothing to hide online”?

#83

Post by ergodic »

IMO the economical argument is the most robust. I see it like this:

There is a big margin between

1) the amount of information that you are legally obligated to provide to public and private sectors

2) the amount information that can be mined about you through facebook and other services (+smart data-crunching)

Safeguarding that information that falls between 2 and 1 is not a matter of moral standpoints or having something to hide. It has only to do with a properly informed rational decision about your personal economy and your well being.

That information that you are willfully leaking will weaken your position in any future negotiation including, financial credit, insurance and employment among others. After Cambridge Analytica it is more clear than ever that it will also weaken your ability to protect yourself against well armed psychological manipulation.

and that is all assuming that public and private institutions do not make mistakes, that legal boundaries and procedures are flawless and that you leave in a well executed democracy.

Re: Ask HN: What's a good response to “It's fine, I've got nothing to hide online”?

#86

Post by dplgk »

metaloha wrote: post #80
gargravarr wrote: post #26

I would ask to rifle through their phone right in front of them. There's a subtle difference between something you'd want to hide (because it could be incriminating) and something you don't want made public (because it could be embarrassing). I have nothing incriminating, but I have embarrassing stuff on my phone that I would rather nobody looked at. A phone is an intensely personal device where a lot of your private…

This isn't a comparative response. Anything I put on Facebook is there with the full knowledge that it isn't going to be private, and that my activities there may be used for profiling purposes. Anything I put on my phone is under a presumption of privacy except as I specifically choose otherwise.

And except when companies use deceptive tactics to extract information and photos that you thought had a presumption of privacy. People were alarmed to see Facebook had a log of all their calls and text messages.

Re: Ask HN: What's a good response to “It's fine, I've got nothing to hide online”?

#87

Post by metaloha »

dplgk wrote: post #86
metaloha wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This isn't a comparative response. Anything I put on Facebook is there with the full knowledge that it isn't going to be private, and that my activities there may be used for profiling purposes. Anything I put on my phone is under a presumption of privacy except as I specifically choose otherwise.

And except when companies use deceptive tactics to extract information and photos that you thought had a presumption of privacy. People were alarmed to see Facebook had a log of all their calls and text messages.

That there is true. App permissions definitely need to be better explained during installation, and unless a permission is required for a fundamental function of the app, optional.
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