Are you also confused about online privacy?
08. Jun, 2011 
6 Comments (2,286 views)
by Christoph Steck / @christophsteck
“I am confused” – these were the honest words of a young participant at the European Dialog on Internet Governance (EuroDIG) conference which took place last week in Belgrade (see our previous post). I participated together with other business representatives from Cisco and Google in a workshop with representatives from the New Media Summer School on “Ethics and Corporate Responsibility”.
The set-up was unusual and helped to created a lively debate which focused quickly on the issue of privacy on the Internet and the control of Internet users over their “digital footprint” (regarding that issue see also our recent post from the debate at the IGF Spain).
My take-away: I realised that the so-called “Digital Natives”, the first generation which grew up with mobile phones, Internet and Social Networks at their fingertip, are just waking up and start to understand that there are also some dangers in the virtual world: the natives understand that they are living in the wild and not in a zoo.
“I am really grateful for all the new services and possibilities I can now use online, they have totally changed and improved my life” – also a quote from the debate which shows that modern communication tool are seen as enhancing lives. They are also believed to be so much part of everyday social life that not using them is not considered a realistic option. But then, it was asked, what happens to that information I post today to my friends on a Social Network, will it be stored and is still visible in a couple of years when I might have changed my opinion and views? Can and should the Internet be able to forget? And if so, in what circumstances?
A couple of results crystallized during the debate:
- Young Internet users want control over their data and information. They want to be able to know and decide what is kept stored on servers and what they might want to delete if they feel it is not appropriate anymore. They want transparency about business practices and how and for what collected data is being used.
- Self-constraint needs to grow as well: Do I really need to put this photo from yesterday’s party online? What can I share with my over 500 “friends” on my Social Network – and what better not?
- Awareness for privacy is the first step and might even over time create growing user demand for online services with much higher privacy standards. However, such services will maybe not be “for free” as current models. However, paying for an online service and not let others pay it through advertisement could give influence back to users.
A good and emotional debate which shows that youth is trying to get a grip on an issue is affecting their everyday life. There is no easy solution for the issue of online privacy, but the youth participants clearly showed sympathy for the idea that their personal data is valuable and needs to be protected. And that data needs to be treated using the same standards and rules, wherever it is collected and by whoever.
And one thing is evident: if Internet users, young or also not that young anymore, do not feel that they can trust services and applications on the Internet, they will not use such services in the same way they do until now. Creating trust and confidence to use the Internet therefore needs to be the common goal for business and policy-makers.
Confusion is bad for all: consumer, business and ultimately the Internet itself.
Are you also confused about what happens with the data and information you put on the Internet? What is your way of dealing with that? What could be a solution to create more trust for Internet users?
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Confused, yes! and also concerned! Concerned by the antiprivacy type of terms and conditions that most virtual services include in the contracts. Most times when you use an online service (either for free or paying), the standard terms and conditions include clauses which mean a serious waive of indiviudal´s rights. Consumers cannot modify the contract, nor deny these particularly negative clauses. As a consumer I wish to be able to use services and protect my privacy. For instance, if a consumer wishes to use many of the social networks or show their photos to friends and family using internet programs, they are “forced” to transfer the rights over these photos. one can always argue that consumers still have the freedom to decide whether they use or not the service but I think today this is not always an option. We want to be protected from abusive terms and conditions that we cannot negotiate. THanks very much!!
Hi!
Thanks for your comment.
I believe the obvious answer to your concerns about better protection of privacy would be simple: “choice and competition”.
I think that we will over time see a whole range of Internet services being offered, some building on advertisement as a major sources for income others rather on subscription. Currently most services which are offered “for free” on the Internet are financed by advertisement, but I imagine that with growing awareness and demand for higher protection of privacy and personal data also services which use other methods, like subscriptions, and which may provide the choice and data protection that you want, will be launched.
However, then the challenge will still be to put in place a system to help consumers easily identify which privacy policies apply – and to do that at a global level in a coordinated way as the Internet is global.
I agree that no easy solutions are in sight, but the Internet offers so many positive improvements of societies, economies and people´s life that it is worth trying finding a good balance and innovative solutions!
Best regards Christoph
Thanks for your answer.
You are right. Internet is great! Choice and competition is always positive and solves many problems. We need to watch and see whether competition is enough to ensure consumer´s protection. I think data is too valuable and companies do not want to give up this market value so easily.
On the other side, it is a fact that consumers do not read terms and conditions (and if they do, they cannot modify them so it does not matter).
So… some ideas:
- clients should be informed properly and easily about the privacy aspects of the terms and conditions.
- clients should accept specifically privacy clauses when contracting.
- an option should always be given to opt out of the clauses that mean a loss of privacy.
- some essential privacy rights (fundamental rights) like privacy of communications should not be allowed to be waived.
- the use by companies of client´s private information should be traceble. They always say it is used for commercial and advertisement but it is not clear in many terms and conditions.
Thanks again for this great opportunity to think constructively together and share views on such important issues. This is certainly a positive way forward!
Best
Hi! I believe you propose some really interesting ideas how to improve transparency about privacy and data protection for users of online services!
I agree that in this regard improvements need to take place but I also think that we should be fair enough to accept that most of these services are just in their infancy and I am sure will mature over time. This is also true for regulation, which will adapt to the new situation and find reasonable solutions if market forces and competition do not deliver them.
By the way: An interesting view, in the end asking for expanding existing privacy and other regulation to Internet companies, was recently published by Vittorio Colao (CEO of Vodafone) in the FT, see:
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4f61df00-8fa8-11e0-954d-00144feab49a.html#axzz1PMirxTQJ
Thanks again and best regards!
Christoph
If you think you are confused now wait till we move to a much more cloud-based world. To encourage people to use the cloud to store all their data much of the access is offered for free, which raises the question how do people make money out off providing free data storage? It is likely to be via what’s in the content or controlling access to the content. Clearly this is driven by commercial imperatives which can have pluses and minuses–sometimes you want to restrict access to your information but others you would like the parties to be able to access it–how are these rules constructed?
Another interesting aspect is that with the advent of the cloud should there be different rules for what’s in the cloud and how you get to the cloud?
And finally on should the Internet have a memory in a sense this is a meaningless question because it’s really saying should we abolish devices with memory connected to the Internet. You can say to specific service providers that they should have a facility for permanent deletion but what about all the copies that exist in local storage that can be uploaded or made accessible. Once data has been made available on a network no one can be certain that copies don’t exist and won’t reappear later.
Hi Steve2020!
you certainly raise a number of very interesting questions about the protection of privacy in the coming “era of the cloud”. I believe it would need a couple of posts to answer all of them, but in the meantime maybe it might interest you to have a look at our recent posts about Cloud computing:
http://www.publicpolicy.telefonica.com/blogs/blog/2011/05/19/cloud-computing-isn%E2%80%99t-just-a-buzzword-2/
And also the one about last meeting of the IGF Spain which discussed the “right to be forgotten” on the Internet:
http://www.publicpolicy.telefonica.com/blogs/blog/2011/05/18/first-annual-conference-of-the-internet-governance-forum-spain-for-an-open-internet-safe-and-sustainable/
I think by the way that commercial cloud computing services – especially for businesses – will only be successful if they guarantee a very high level of reliability, security and privacy. So maybe the cloud will help to enhance privacy on the Internet and not diminish it?
Best regards
Christoph