photo: Gauldo / Francois Bouly
Having an online life can be quite dangerous as an increasing plethora of personal information is posted online, available to anyone with internet access. A new website www.pleaserobme.com has sprung up to raise awareness on how dangerous the use of personal information online can be. The website aims to make people more conscious of their online decisions, especially on social-media websites.
Many people share very detailed personal information online. This act is encouraged by the popularity of social media. Websites such as facebook, twitter and foursquare encourage the sharing of personal information. Personal information is often given in status updates, acceptance to event invites, displaying one’s class/work schedule, and personal addresses on one’s profile. Other information such as pictures and notes can give information about new expensive belongings. Such information is moderately safe when only released to friends and family, but often people do not protect who can see their data and add friends that they do not know. It is important to keep in mind that once you release personal information on the internet it very hard, if even possible to take it back, and it is not a crime for someone else to be in possession of such information/data. Someone could easily know when a keen and avid twitter user is not at their residence and when they have purchased a new car, leaving them vulnerable to theft. Identity theft is also a viable occurrence when a stranger can obtain such personal information about you.
Technology advances faster than the law. The Utah State legislature has not yet adequately dealt with these privacy issues. This is especially important as new and evolving systems are increasing and within the next decade they will continue to and have large amounts of personal information stored of digital records of people’s movements through public space. Especially locational information. Information is becoming easier to have and store in ways outside personal internet use, through such things as public transit passes, electronic tolling devices, cell phones, searches near current location on mobile devices, free wifi and electronic swipe cards for access doors
