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Why Privacy Matters

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Re: Why Privacy Matters

#71

Post by AnonHP »

rigel_kentaurus wrote: post #62
css wrote: post #12

I do not understand what this article is trying to communicate. It starts with a rambling anecdote and ends with a list of some unrelated terms barely tangential to privacy.

I loved the anecdote on the Jewish census. Because I am always struggling to find examples about why sharing information might not be dangerous now, but it can be later, and you never really now. I wish the article were about that, about what kind of information we are sharing in the present time, that may come to bite us back. Here is my spin: Information can be used to your advantage (Relevant ads are good when the…

> Google still has the original founders on the board

While technically true, they signed out a long time ago from what Google ought to be or ought not to be. That much is evident from Google’s actions and the relegation of “Don’t be evil” and all that.

Re: Why Privacy Matters

#73

Post by erikerikson »

These discussions never seem to recognize the role of privacy for empowering oppressors. Shining light into the darkness is the metaphor used by journalists. What if there was no or drastically less darkness?

How would the Uyghur example be different if the Chinese governments discussions, plans, and actions were public knowledge? More implementable, if every citizen concerned that they were at risk ran a self monitoring system that could be purchased or issued by NGOs or reporters which created a public document of their treatment.

What if the German population had been shown the images of torture and abuse so that they could know what the politics were doing? What if married soldier's philandering and rape were shared with their partners?

What if today in the U.S. the smaller scale oppressions of domestic violence were thoroughly documented for courts and automatically detected to provide systemic support? What if "he said, she said" was a problem of the past?

What if every government official's behavior was publicly documented so that any bad actors could be proactively and clearly identified and their good actions could be commended?

What if your argument with your partner(s) or friends were reviewable so that you never had to argue about what you said, you could check it and apologize for what you said (or be apologized to) and get back on track to building understanding instead of entrenching in conflict?

There are obvious challenges that would need to be thought through but it might be worth considering.

Re: Why Privacy Matters

#74

Post by unabst »

rigel_kentaurus wrote: post #62
css wrote: post #12

I do not understand what this article is trying to communicate. It starts with a rambling anecdote and ends with a list of some unrelated terms barely tangential to privacy.

I loved the anecdote on the Jewish census. Because I am always struggling to find examples about why sharing information might not be dangerous now, but it can be later, and you never really now. I wish the article were about that, about what kind of information we are sharing in the present time, that may come to bite us back. Here is my spin: Information can be used to your advantage (Relevant ads are good when the…

The implications were not that bad until companies were able to obtain enough information to change our minds and change our votes. Cambridge Analytica weaponized information. Russia weaponized information. Bots and fake accounts are rampant. Facebook is a warzone, in the most literal sense of the word. Their current implementation is a national security threat and a threat to democracy. And Mark Zuckerberg is that CEO that let it happen.

It doesn't matter what information you share. Facebook buys information from everywhere. They aleady know if your relationship status even if you leave it blank. That's the trap. Then their paying customers are given access to you, based on who they want to convince.

Re: Why Privacy Matters

#75

Post by matz1 »

auslegung wrote: post #70
matz1 wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Privacy is about ensuring no one has your data who shouldn't Yes and that is because that someone can use it to harm you and you'll suffer. Ensuring no one has your data who shouldn't is only one way but not the only way to prevent the suffering. Let say you know my credit card account number, the reason I don't want other people to know the number is because it can be used to stole my money. But what if there is wa…

I'm fairly certain we will always require privacy. If I have your credit card number and I want to use it to hurt you, I can, unless there's something else I need that I don't have, perhaps a security code. If someone can figure this out without needing privacy that'd be pretty phenomenal, but my little brain can't conceive of such a thing. And until then, we need very strong privacy.

The solution for the credit card problem would be hard but there are plenty of situation where the solution is not that inconceivable.

One way that it may work is if there is way you can trace any transaction good enough so that you can't use the credit card number without revealing yourself.

Another example would be if I'm gay. This information can be used to really hurt me in the past but not so much these days. Sure I can hide this information to prevent people to hurt me but I rather to fix the issue of the need of hiding it in the first people.

I would imagine if people can hide being gay perfectly there wouldn't be that much acceptance today.

Re: Why Privacy Matters

#76

Post by devanon »

wnd_pn wrote: post #37

I totally agree with you. Unfortunately as of today, people are not putting enough attention on who they give their sensitive information to. Data breaches are increasing in number, billion of accounts are hacked every day (I just discovered one of my side-accounts got hacked through https://haveibeenpwned.com/ ), nevertheless the majority of us is still not protecting its data properly (perhaps the problem relies on…

https://privacytoolslist.com/#leak-test-tools full list of such tools and many others. And protonmail is anti-privacy. They have access to emails and happy to give access to any data on demand

Re: Why Privacy Matters

#77

Post by stickfigure »

Clo_S wrote: post #32
css wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Are you trying to equate buying an Alexa device or using Facebook to your anecdote? I do not really understand how the concepts are related.

No, that's not what I said. I'm trying to show what sharing sensitive information with companies and governments can lead to.

Your thesis seems to be "Facebook knows you're shopping for a new car therefore Nazis." However well intentioned, it strains credulity. You should make a better case for why privacy matters.

Re: Why Privacy Matters

#78

Post by AnthonyMouse »

stickfigure wrote: post #77
Clo_S wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, that's not what I said. I'm trying to show what sharing sensitive information with companies and governments can lead to.

Your thesis seems to be "Facebook knows you're shopping for a new car therefore Nazis." However well intentioned, it strains credulity. You should make a better case for why privacy matters.

Turn it around. Not "Facebook knows things about you, therefore Nazis" but rather "Nazis existed as a historical fact, therefore what Facebook knows about you is incredibly dangerous."

Re: Why Privacy Matters

#79

Post by stickfigure »

AnthonyMouse wrote: post #78
stickfigure wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your thesis seems to be "Facebook knows you're shopping for a new car therefore Nazis." However well intentioned, it strains credulity. You should make a better case for why privacy matters.

Turn it around. Not "Facebook knows things about you, therefore Nazis" but rather "Nazis existed as a historical fact, therefore what Facebook knows about you is incredibly dangerous."

What percentage of your purchases do you make with credit cards?

Re: Why Privacy Matters

#80

Post by jedimastert »

Clo_S wrote: post #24
mhh__ wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would have a look at GitHub pages, for a static site it's really all you need (blog, right?) I haven't actually used it for anything yet but I have a script that turns LaTeX into nice looking HTML pages, saves messing around with the CSS for hours.

Thanks! I've heard of GitHub pages, and yes I just need a static site. I'd have to look if I can allow newsletter subscription with GitHub pages.

You could try MailChimp. I've used it for a few gigs
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