Online Privacy

The Impact of Social Media on Privacy

The internet has become an essential part of everyone’s lives as well as the global economic climate. Recently, the worldwide web has been dominated by the creativity of social networking technologies and blogs. Today, a sizable portion of the global population uses social networking platforms to communicate with friends and family, as well as to share their whole lives on the internet. The regular social media websites, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, not only allow people to build profiles. Many other websites need registration as well as the construction of a profile. As a result of all these, people are going to certainly post their private information on these sites, and for that reason, it often becomes accessible to any individual worldwide as it is on the internet. This may turn into a severe concern with regards to identity theft, and may additionally result in theft as well as stalking. People can utilize your private information and attempt to obtain personal, crucial numbers associated with bank accounts or credit cards, which may consequently result in theft in severe cases (Park, Cheol & Jong-Kun 535). In the case of stalking, though perhaps not too frequent, individuals having mental problems or an abnormal infatuation with another individual can make use of the private information as well as daily activities that a person shares on the internet to go to the extreme conditions of stalking them. There are lots of adverse implications associated with sharing information on the internet, but folks take pleasure in keeping in touch with families and friends regardless of physical distance, as well as keeping themselves updated in relation to essential functions in their lifestyles. Social networking sites are not a negative element, but they ought to be utilized in a way that a person’s privacy is secured. To guarantee better online privacy, social media websites ought to provide enhanced privacy alternatives, and individuals, as well as parents, need to educate themselves as well as other people on the way to maintain their data security whenever browsing the internet.

Concerns Regarding Privacy Guidelines

The most widespread discussion in opposition to making data security alternatives on social media more formidable is coming from promotion and advertisement personnel as well as people that feel a few privacy guidelines are too stringent. Individuals that are employed by organizations in the marketing field are continually racking their brains on people’s preferences and for that reason take into consideration the personal data present in social sites, as well as from cookies, which show the internet sites one has visited, to help them on their job. For instance, on Facebook, the site utilizes cookies to ascertain what commercials to showcase for every individual accessing the site. This is a breach of personal privacy, regardless of whether it is just with the aim of determining how to promote goods better to particular groups of people. Nonetheless, there are different ways for advertisement personnel to acquire details regarding personal preferences as well as lifestyles, such as using internet surveys and even through designing Facebook groups along with web pages for specific services and goods. By doing this, the advertising firms are not breaching anyone’s data security, but still in a position to connect to real people that they are trying to promote their services or goods to. As for individuals that may feel that the privacy guidelines are too rigorous, there is always the alternative, and it is much better to be free and open with their information as compared with protecting it.

Safeguarding Data Security on Social Media

The first and most significant approach to safeguarding people’s internet level of data security is for social media sites to make the privacy options easily and widely accessible. Facebook has accomplished this in the past few years, through developing alternatives not to create one’s profile visible to individuals that are not his/her “friends,” and developing alternatives for every single status and post that the individuals shares. There are options for making it possible for only close friends as well as associates to view it, through grouping all the friends. Additionally, there are options to permit if a person desires to make it accessible to friends of friends, non-friends, or perhaps everybody. These guidelines are excellent, but there is a lot more that has to be achieved such as the cookies for instance utilized for promotions on Facebook along with other social support systems. However, occasionally this can exceed that whenever it involves the corporate globe - businesses are going to often demand their personnel’s Facebook account credentials, and this needless to say is not acceptable and ought not to be authorized. Picazo-Vela, Sergio, Isis and Luis (p.504) suggest that “Facebook along with the corporate environment ought to never meet, and guidelines have to be integrated to avoid that, in addition, to boost every individual’s security of their data, particularly in a global where folks often put their lifestyle on the web.”

Educating Individuals on Online Privacy

Another step that has to be undertaken is to enlighten people regarding how to safeguard their information on the internet on their own, and this may be achieved in two approaches. The first method is for browser corporations such as Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Safari, etc. to set up straightforward instructions for individuals that utilize their services that details how to secure data on the internet and protect against anyone, regardless of whether it is somebody with the motive of doing harm to you through stealing your identification along with personal data, or a promoting employee trying to determine people’s personal preferences. The Electronic Frontier Foundation that has developed a website to assist individuals in securing their privacy on the internet has set up a collection of necessary data security regulations for users to adhere to that the site declares can be ideal for every person to understand, and they are straightforward. This list points out specific issues such as not to unintentionally expose account numbers, not to respond to spam e-mail, and several other beneficial tips of recommendation for internet surfers (Picazo-Vela, Sergio, Isis & Luis 509).

Another way whereby people especially children can be educated with regards to online data security is through their parents. Kids are the most susceptible about online data security as well as getting scammed online, and this is for the fundamental reason that they merely have not been well-informed regarding it yet (O’Keeffe, Gwenn & Kathleen 802). Youngsters are making full use of the web and becoming proficient in technologies more rapidly today than in the past, and due to this, they have to understand how to get around this technological innovation that they can utilize the moment they begin using it. Educating the children on the few essential guidelines is going to make sure that they have a secure, pleasant time on the web and that they are not going to encounter any difficulties as adults as a result of insufficient data security, or inadvertently unveiling any details on the internet while they are kids and don’t understand any better. Educating people of every age the guidelines associated with online data security is essential to solving this issue (Livingstone, Sonia & Ellen 309).

Conclusion

The implementation of these remedies can assist individuals to be aware of dangers associated with sharing their personal information on the web while nonetheless making it possible for them to use social media networking sites to stay in touch and socialize with people securely. The remedies are going to guarantee that people can appreciate their time on the internet without regularly worrying about their level of privacy as well as the protection of their data. Needless to say, there are lots of possible adverse implications associated with not adhering to basic guidelines regarding online security and for that reason, not being able to comprehend them is going to lead to consequences such as stalking, identity theft, or perhaps loss of money through the utilization of bank account numbers as well as personal data.

Works Cited

Livingstone, Sonia, and Ellen Helsper. “Balancing opportunities and risks in teenagers’ use of the internet: The role of online skills and internet self-efficacy.” New media & society 12.2 (2010): 309-329.

O’Keeffe, Gwenn Schurgin, and Kathleen Clarke-Pearson. “The impact of social media on children, adolescents, and families.” Pediatrics 127.4 (2011): 800-804.

Park, Cheol, and Jong-Kun Jun. “A cross-cultural comparison of Internet buying behavior: Effects of Internet usage, perceived risks, and innovativeness.” International Marketing Review 20.5 (2003): 534-553.

Picazo-Vela, Sergio, Isis Gutiérrez-Martínez, and Luis Felipe Luna-Reyes. “Understanding risks, benefits, and strategic alternatives of social media applications in the public sector.” Government information quarterly 29.4 (2012): 504-511.