Friday 12th September
I’d never put much thought into really defining Safety and Privacy until it come to our presentation regarding Facebook. As a member of Facebook I had initially joined and not even bothered to read the Terms of Agreement Policy… Standard procedure for myself – just tick the box and avoid even viewing the – blah, blah, blah…we are not liable… will not be held responsible for… information. This was until I became intrigued by the so-called ‘haters’ of Facebook and other critical internet users who refuse to join such sites for the fear that their personal details may fall into the wrong hands or be accessed by higher intelligence agencies for means and purposes of their own. Hypochondriacs… Or are they? My mind starts to wander… who can access my personal details and what they may want to do with such information. Does it matter? I mean, if you’re not doing anything wrong then you’ve got nothing to hide – right? But America – now this Country is notoriously duplicitous. Home to free speech and freedom (apparently); any behaviour which asserts any such display is quickly stifled and accompanied by an equally unconvincing pretext. Being the proud owner of Facebook entices me to do a little research of my own – what’s really at stake?
Conspiracy theories. How I love my opinions and beliefs to be challenged by the sceptics! More concerning is the evidence in their claims – maybe they’re onto something… As optimistic as I am, I know that if you have enough money you’re somewhat untouchable and can obtain almost anything your heart desires. So who is the money behind my favourite site? At first, all appears pretty straightforward; suspect investors with a common interest: technology which will further prosper their back accounts. Hmm, maybe I should take a closer look at that legal jargon hidden almost one click too far away – “…we may share account or other information when we believe it is necessary to comply with law or to protect our interests or property. This may include sharing information with other companies, lawyers, agents or government agencies.” Okay, that may be a little suspicious but still, who’d bother? Then it suddenly surpasses into questionable, Facebook “also collects information about you from other sources, such as newspapers and instant messaging services.” They what?! But I just thought I was keeping in touch with my friends! Right, enough of the sugar-coated truth, what’s really going down…
There are some under publicised corporate benefactors that differ from the money hungry shareholders. They just happen to be affiliated with big brother types such as the CIA and the Pentagon. Coincidence? Possibly. Sinister? You bet. And you can guarantee that they have invested interests with ulterior motives. Who are they?
In-Q-Tel: information technology and intelligence firm who are also renowned for “nurturing data mining technologies.”
Information Awareness Office: mission statement “to gather as much information as possible about everyone, in a centralized location, for easy perusal by the United States government, including (though not limited to) Internet activity, credit card purchase histories, airline ticket purchases, car rentals, medical records, educational transcripts, driver’s licenses, utility bills, tax returns, and any other available data.” (http://novex.blogspot.com/2007/05/conspiracy-behind-facebookcom.html)
Enough said. So before you sign back into the virtual communication porthole you may just want to consider the following -
Have you done your homework?
I’m no expert but from what I’ve gathered in agreeing to Facebooks ‘Terms of Use’ I have essentially foregone any privacy I once had from government agencies and am now both limited and entirely responsible for my own safety while I use their service. Looks like my business is somewhat more accessible and public than I would have liked to believe.
Innovation Progress
Yesterday Matt & Simon presented there topic: streaming video. Somewhere along the line the boys managed to swindle their way in front of Bec and myself – which has worked out to be a blessing in disguise! The presentation was fantastic; very informative, interesting and hands-on. Not only did this duo set the benchmark they also reinforced how I would like to present my material next week. I am notorious for putting too much information into my PowerPoints. Upon checking how ‘interesting and engaging’ my already completed slides were I was faced with a reality check – they were hideous. My options were:
a.) to bore everyone to death with a whole lot of text;
b.) start over.
There wasn’t a decision to be made, as the last thing I wanted was to listen to everyone typing their disapproval to empathetic friends on Facebook chat! So I chose the material that I really wanted to give during the presentation and separated it from all the extra information that can be posted onto our wiki page. Problem solved! My research wasn’t wasted nor the time spent organising the initial presentation as it would still be available, just at a later time and in a different context.
Within our presentation next week I will be concentrating on Facebook, with particular focus given to the uses, features, groups, privacy and the underlying motives of corporate partners. My particular interest lies with the later. An article published in ‘The Guardian’ by T. Hodgkinson for those interested highlights why all internet users need to be informed and inquisitive to the actual intentions of the online websites that they choose to become affiliated with (including facebook). Hodgkinson presents a cynical perspective in regards to Facebook’s privacy policy and can be viewed via the URL http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/jan/14/facebook.
Skills acquired this week:
- The ‘print screen’ function aka: F14 – one small step for Technology, one big step for Hayley!! (my “Aaaah…” moment with PowerPoint presentations, goodbye text overload & hello visual learning).
- Keep it.com – my online streaming storage solution.
- Teachers.tv – an online resource virtually made for aspiring teachers.
- Youtube – gateway to amusing, entertaining, and engaging material.
