Understanding the computer and privacy issues

1. Understanding the ’Computer and Privacy’ Issue
Dr. Varun Kumar
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2. Outlines
1 Introduction to Understanding the ’Computer and Privacy’ Issue
2 Personal Privacy
3 Individual - Organizational Relationships
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3. Introduction to the ’Computer and Privacy’ Issue
⇒ Computer privacy is an important key factor, that protect us.
⇒ Multiple issues need to revolve:
Collection and use of data.
Information obtained from data versus loss of privacy.
The needs of the organization collecting and using the information
versus individuals right of privacy (considered a social good).
⇒ An example is that Amazon collects information on its clients in order
to be able to inform them of new books in their interest areas.
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4. Personal Privacy
⇒ What is personal privacy and why is it valuable?
⇒ Most people expect privacy in their personal space such as home - the
domain in which following should not interfere.
Government
Other organizations
⇒ Privacy is often seen as intrinsic goods − goods in itself
| {z }
privacy
− which can
lead to other goods.
⇒ Kant’s theory is that privacy is essential to autonomy and that
autonomy is inconceivable without privacy.
⇒ Technological development has changed how business is conducted.
⇒ It also has a huge impact on personal and community identities.
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5. Continued–
⇒ Do not consider just personal relationships consider professional
relationships as well.
⇒ When you are chatting or emailing on the Internet, nobody knows
who you are by anything other than the name you have given as your
identity.
⇒ Your physical characteristics
Skin color
Height
Physical features
are unknown.
⇒ Your online characteristics are formed by your messages.
⇒ What is known about you is only the image that you choose to give
of yourself.
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6. Impact on the Individual
⇒ Identity: Anonymity can be liberating.
⇒ Other users you come in contact by Internet cannot look at your
physical self or hear your accent and make assumptions about you.
⇒ You are judged on the opinions and information you express.
⇒ Intrusion on Privacy: Personal information can be captured at certain
sites through the information you have provided when you make an
Online transaction
Tracking the user by using cookies.
⇒ Data may be captured and analyzed without the user’s knowledge or
consent.
⇒ Their surfing patterns are collected and analyzed to classify them into
marketing categories.
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7. Continued
⇒ Many companies now monitor employee e-mail,
⇒ Company argument → Any email leaving the company is the business
of the company.
⇒ Should anyone wish to contact an employee with urgent personal
information there is a risk that this could become public knowledge.
Individual Organizational Relationships
⇒ It is said that information a person gives to an organization empowers
them over the person.
⇒ For example, a credit card company → Data mining perspective
⇒ Organizations can establish this relationship without any action by
the individual (e.g. Subscription information).
⇒ Government has tried to deal with this and to allay fears.
By passing laws that prevent different database.
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8. Continued
⇒ Laws have been passed on the privacy issues concerning medical and
credit records amongst others.
⇒ In the mid-1970s, the United States provided five principles to govern
fair information gathering practices:
1 No secret personal data keeping.
2 Individual must be able to discover their personal information and how
it is used.
3 Individual must be able to discover and stop information collected for
one purpose but is used for another.
4 Individual must be able to correct wrong information.
5 Database administrator of personal information must take necessary
precautions to prevent misuse and also to assure reliability of data.
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