Digital Privacy Rights in the Information Age

Posted on June 7, 2021  •  6 minutes  • 1097 words

What is meant by privacy?

If we check the etymology of ‘privacy’, we find that it comes from the Latin word 'prīvus' , which means ‘alone’. We have a lot of things we should keep private. For example, It’s preferable to keep all the important data, historic photographs, videos, or texts offline. Because when we upload them to an online platform to a server, it becomes not private anymore. Privacy is also a basic right under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights . It implies responsibility, too. If we have personal information about an individual, we become responsible for the protection of his or her privacy.

How do we define privacy in today’s information age?

Any action we take on electronic and digital devices is what we are talking about. Digital privacy awareness protects the public when they use it. The Internet is the primary place where people’s personal information is collected and processed. For example, while we surf to any website, we leave some digital footprints which are traced back to the user. Internet protocol address, electronics provider, device model, and location are some of them. The information is gathered, processed and sold for business purposes. In terms of human rights, when we look for goods or even when we talk about them, we have the right not be traced back to us. Smart phones, computers and portable devices store personal information about individuals. These include phone numbers, addresses, opinions and images. If a person wishes to remain anonymous in order to preserve their privacy, proactive measures are necessary. Finally and above all, a data breach can have material consequences.

Why should we pay attention to our presence and behavior on the Internet?

In “real life”, we don’t share personal information with a stranger we meet on the street. Even though we are “online”, anyone on the Internet can access the messages we share, and some can also access the history of our browsing. Online information can exist forever, even if we delete it, because copies can exist, and they have left anyone on the internet. Digital privacy therefore extends the old concept of privacy to the online life in which we all live today. Therefore, a human rights defender would have to be aware of the privacy ecosystem. Let us assume that there is an interview file with someone who prefers to remain anonymous. You have to keep that file offline and protect it. An error that results in a leak can be a threat to that person. The best policy about this kind of situation may be to prevent the identity from being revealed in advance.

What could happen if we share a photograph of such a person?

It may cause very serious issues. As mentioned earlier, it would have to protect beforehand. For example, if he or she prefers to stay anonymous, it may not be necessary to record them visually. Even a photograph taken while visiting this person can create confidentiality issues. There are certain types of data that we cannot change when they are revealed. From a daily life aspect, there are practical examples. When a face recognition model has been registered, it means it can be stored forever. Biometrics is essential data to be protected over a person’s lifetime. Sharing a birthday photograph taken with friends may seem less important than sharing our DNA or fingerprints with someone. In the meantime, every file has technical details other than its content called metadata. The creation time, the editing time, the owner of the file and a lot of information are included in the file. A photo taken during an interview may reveal the location, even though it does not appear in the photo.

Biometrics

The protection of biometrics is one of the main concerns in this matter. However, as a person, we would like to socialize with our friends on social media websites and maintain contact with them. We live more or less on the Internet. They have also proclaimed the internet as a human right in the constitutions of some countries. How important is digital privacy? What are some of the challenges we might have in the future?

Why they should keep my data, that’s one of the common responses to digital privacy concerns. Freedom of expression is a fundamental right of the individual. But, we need to know how to use these platforms and services. If we upload information into any online service, it can be stored forever. We should consider this for long-term consequences. Let’s say if a free messaging application with up to billions of users worth billions of US dollars, even none of the users pay to the company.

I would like to mention a project titled “Terms of Service; Didn't Read” initiated by Hugo Roy . It gives grades to the most popular websites about their respect to digital privacy. On a practical level, the issue have more material consequences. When we share photos taken during a vacation, it sends a message that we are not home at the moment. Anyone who wants to break into our house can use that information. Therefore, even an innocent act that we take online via photo sharing can negatively affect our lives.

There is a new kind of human rights violation in the information age. That includes cyberbullying. What is this and what are the implications?

This is a new form of harassment that happens on online platforms, especially among young people. This can occur on content sharing and communication platforms. Sharing negative content about someone is a definition of cyberbullying. Firstly, it is difficult for parents to detect whether their children have bullied or not. This is a very important subject because it has psychological and even fatal consequences. It violates privacy and in some cases can lead to the sexual exploitation of children. The difficulty of detecting this kind of violence must be understood. Parents should help children about their online presence. For more information about the topic, the official US governmental website provides informative and effective guidance. Educating children to protect their digital personal information should be a priority before they use smart internet connected devices. If we teach them the difference between real life and online life, they will know that it is another world that we need to pay attention to what we do.

Digital privacy education and training is not a sprint; it is a marathon that takes place on a long-term basis.

This paper was prepared for a podcast series in the University of Padova.
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