Social Media and Surveillance - MM52

'Somebody's Watching You' is an article based upon the potential risks being active online poses as a threat, particularly to young people who are avid users of the internet, moreso of social media. It focuses on the idea that the government has access to everyone's private information, online, due to their use of the internet.

To be quite honest, I don't particularly value the idea that even people I know, let alone complete strangers, can access my information online. Therefore, the notion of government surveillance does bother me. I personally don't use social media much anymore unless it is absolutely necessary for certain circumstances. If I really needed to use a platform, I'd prefer to do so anonymously so as to not make my information readily available to any onlooker.

I own the view that it any websites that participate in such surveillance for the purpose of research without gaining clear, informed consent should not be able to do so. Although I do agree that people should be reading the terms and conditions for a website, it is often too tedious, particularly for young people to do so. Young people are also quite vulnerable and unaware of such schemes so I think the concept of data mining is unethical.

I don't believe that my privacy is a small price to pay for the benefits online. I wouldn't mind paying for a few select services as opposed to relinquishing my privacy. I think that people should be offered the choice of whether or not they pay for a service or receive it free of charge, at the expense of their own privacy. Especially since most people, myself included up until having read this article, are unaware of just how much information and to what extent it is being used. Even if people do choose to reveal their information, I think they should also be given the freedom of choice with regards to who is permitted to access it. Therefore, those who don't mind targetted advertising but are bothered by Government Surveillance, can prevent the government from seeing their information. The government are aware that people do not want to disclose much, if any, data to them which is why they attempt to do it in other, less obvious ways. I think that this method of extracting personal information is manipulative, deceptive and breaching our human rights. I think that at the very least, we should be informed whenever the information is going to be used and what it would be used for.