With the increasing number of
social networking sites, computer security and user security are being brought
into question a lot. Many sites employ “cookies” which track what users are
browsing so that ads can target users/consumers specifically. For the most part
these cookies can be harmless however hackers can use these to invade
computers.
In the article “Risk and Riches in User Data for Facebook” writer Somini Sengupta outlines the problems and
arguments surrounding Facebook’s plan to go public. Sengupta says that Facebook
“is under pressure to find new ways to turn data into profit.” Facebook already
uses user’s likes to direct advertisements on homepages. The US and Europe are
arguing that user’s should have more control over their data and how it is
shared. User’s joined Facebook to network and reconnect with lost friends, not
to be the source of profit. But the bulk of Facebook’s profit does in fact come
from advertising. Europe has put fierce constraints on Facebook in which it
wants Facebook to “honor a consumer’s so-called right to be forgotten, by
deleting an individual’s data at his or her request” and also requires
containing user constraint. Lawsuits in the US have also brought woes to
Facebook accusing them of tracking user activities even after logging out of
Facebook.
Another article I found, “Putting a priority on privacy” by Steven Musil which introduces the White House and
Federal Trade Communications “Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights”. This bill
suggests that consumers have the right to notify Web sites if they wanted to be
tracked or not. Some people like the targeted ads because it leads them to
products they may like, others find them as an invasion of privacy. What do you
think? Should websites be allowed to use cookies to track user browsing? What
are some privacy issues you see arising from online tracking?
Companies like Facebook and Youtube
make their profits on the ability to sell ad space and target its users. I
think this is okay because its makes it possible for Facebook and Youtube to be
free for its users; however, I think users should have the choice of whether or
not they are tracked. Many people who aren’t computer savy or are younger users
may not realize that their browsing is being tracked and this is where I see
the problem. Even though most of the tracking is used for marketing purpose
some of it could turn out to be for malicious intent by hackers. For instance,
they can gain personal information from these sights and then spam your e-mail
with a virus. Therefore I agree with the proposed European policy stating that
users should give their consent or have the ability to opt out.
I don’t believe that Facebook should be required to restrict the information they receive because it makes Facebook free to all users and ultimately it is the user who decides how much information to give away. I believe that it is more of a personal decision than a government decision because the user can decide not to reveal certain information or not participate at all. If you never state that you like something then there is no way for Facebook to tell that you like whatever it is. I ultimately think that this is an issue that each person must form a solution individually because there is no way that any restriction by the government could satisfy every user or non-user of Facebook or YouTube.
ReplyDeleteI believe it should be Facebook and the user’s choice whether certain information should be restricted or not. Facebook should contact its users and see their views and opinions; I believe it should be users’ choice on if their information can be used for marketing purposes. If Facebook does decide to make all users information retrievable then it should make them aware of these changes and allow them to delete their profile if this is an issue. The government should not get involved if users are getting messages and warnings of the availability change of their information. This could result in Facebook not making enough money to withstand its popularity, but it is the only way these issues should be addressed.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with the recently proposed European policy. Giving the user the ability to decide its role in the cyber world would be very beneficial. Also, there is the argument that Facebook and other social media sites make their profit from the tracking and that is what makes their sites free. Whether it is being tracked or not, advertising companies can still post their advertising on Facebook, it just may not be "special" to the user. I think that social media sites being able to track their user's history is very disturbing. I believe it is an invasion of privacy that as users we should be able to opt out of.
ReplyDeleteWebsites should be able to do whatever they want as far as tracking someone’s searches in order to better sell ad space. Their business is to make money, you visiting that site shows they have come out with a good product that people want to use, so they can make money by selling the ad space to the highest bidder. If they can sell more space by personalizing those ads then why shouldn’t they? The user decides to use the website and therefore allows the site to use these “cookies” to its advantage. If you don’t like how the website uses them then don’t use the website. There is no other piont that should really matter. We live in a capitalistic society so; we shouldn’t limit any company’s profits if people want to use their products, with the exception that their products aren’t necessities. However, a product like Facebook, though many teenagers would argue against me, is not a necessity of life. So, if you are willing to use their product, and have a choice not to use the product, then you should have absolutely no say in how the company makes money off of your use. We are creating so many laws that limit businesses to run inefficiently that we fail to see that we have the power, as consumers, to not use the product. Just because people don’t like every aspect of the product doesn’t mean we can create laws that hinder a business from making money off its consumers. So stop complaining about it and if you don’t like it, don’t use it.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is fair for Facebook to use "cookies" in order to figure out what ad should be shown on someone's page. Having ads that are relevant to the user makes more sense than having a random advertisement on the page. Facebook as a company needs to make a profit. By making the use of Facebook free, it allows them to find alternative means of a money source. Facebook is free to use, so they sell ad space in order to gain a profit.
ReplyDeleteI think they should be able to use cookies. It is how they are targeting you and in order to stay free, they need to generate some funding. People in today’s society are always going to be evil. Turning things meant for good and making them evil. It is just a part of today’s world and if we want the convenience of things like facebook we will have to take some risks.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, it doesn't bother me all that much because I clear my cookies fairly regularly and use adblocking software. Just like David and Chris said, companies use cookies to generate ads so they can fund themselves. If there were no ads, we might have to start paying for Facebook. Even if I didn't clear my cookies regularly and didn't use ad blocking software, it still wouldn't bother me all that much because why should I care that someone in a distant office somewhere knows that I secretly have an obsession about say Hello Kitty. There really is no harm in that. It's not like they're going to steal my identity.
ReplyDeleteHowever you should be wary of the sites that DO try to steal your identity and collect cookies to steal your information. That's an example of using cookies for the worse. Then again, sites that do these are extremely sketchy looking to begin with so most people would probably not go to them regardless.
I support helping sites stay free and have my ad blocker set to only certain sites so I can fund the sites that I believe really need the money likes sites that aren't as immensely populated like some scanslation sites.
I personally don't think people should have a say in whether or not they are being tracked. If your personal privacy is more important to you than the service that an online company such as Google or Facebook is providing you, then you shouldn't be using their free service. In fact the thought that some one is tracking and recording our data over the internet might add a little more accountability to internet that can sometimes be like the wild wild west. However, I do take issue with the fact that since these services don't have air tight cyber security systems they can not properly protect the sensitive information that they collect for ambitious hackers. I feel as thought these companies should be more transparent in the fact that they are collecting our information and be held more accountable for such security breeches that result in loss of said information.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting issue because I did not know that any of this stuff happened. I knew what cookies were and that they were track ware, but I never knew that this is how you could get a cookie. I definitely would not want Facebook to track me not, because I believe strongly in privacy since it is a right that was given to us by our forefathers and is constantly threatened by things like this, but it is more because of the risk of getting a virus. Since, a computer is used so much to communicate with teachers and to do assignments I would not want any problems occurring because I got a stupid virus indirectly by using Facebook. I agree with the European notion that makes Facebook extend a question on whether or not it can track you by using cookies. I think it will be safer for users.
ReplyDeleteI feel as if this issue has two sides to it. The first is that we are being analyzed without asking for it, or at least without being completely aware of it. Companies are making million by analyzing or 'likes' and turning them into studies. However, is the problem really that troubling. The way I see it those advertisements cause less harm with their presence than their absence would. Imagine if we had to start paying for Facebook! Id withstand these ads than giving Zuckerberg more money than he already has.
ReplyDeleteCookies and tracking, on the internet and especially on many of the world’s tops sites, is a double edged sword. Many people don’t realize the convenience it is to have Google track what you do. For instance, through your IP address Google can determine geographically where you are accessing the internet from. From this Google can narrow down web results in this way. So let’s say you are using siri on your new iPhone and are searching for a restaurant to eat at for dinner. A simple request of siri and a Google search of Italian restaurants will yield Italian restaurants near your position on the earth. This is on example of many that make tracking on the internet useful. A way it makes it bad is through invasion of privacy such as malicious viruses from the internet and hackers. This is where I think the problem occurs. I think it makes life easier in certain aspects to have tracking, but when it makes it hard in other. When it crosses the line of selling your information through ads and harming your computer that is when I have a problem with tracking, and wish that tracking was an optional feature. In all I don’t think that things will change with internet privacy, because technically you could choose not to use these services. And if you were the one who thought to sell peoples information through tracking, I believe you would want it too.
ReplyDeleteWhenever I hear how unsafe my information on Facebook or how easy it is to be tracked my heart starts racing. I hate the idea that someone could be tracking my every move on the internet. Therefore, whenever I hear how Facebook can sell my information for a profit I get disgusted. Yes, it allows me to have Facebook for free technically, but it does have a cost. I always want to delete my Facebook and everything online about me whenever I hear about this security issue. I love feeling safe and the reality is, is that no one is safe on the internet. Therefore I hate how Facebook can sell my information. I hate the idea of ads on my profile and just simply being tracked. Some hacker out there can know me better than my friends know me and that is NOT okay with me. Honestly, I want to delete my Facebook right now. In ACIS class we were talking about how people can even hack into my microphone or even my camera. That is despicable. I hate the idea that someone can see me through another computer. I hate this security issue. I think I should have a choice to lock my information down so that no one can sell it for a profit. Honestly, it's my information not theirs. Personally, I know it's a stretch, but it could be called plagiarism for taking my information that I'm not clearly giving to them. Unfortunately no one reads the security page so they do have entitlement to do whatever they want with our information. I hate that and honestly continue to ponder why I'm even on Social Networking sites.
ReplyDeleteMany, many companies track their users. One of the reasons why I refuse to buy an Apple product is for this very reason. The agreement to be tracked is in the Apple user agreement, so you cannot use an Apple product without consenting to having your location tracked. I believe this is very bad business practice, and makes me extremely cautious when signing or agreeing to anything nowadays.
ReplyDeleteI don't personally like being tracked by sites. I don't mind the fact that Facebook wants to make a profit, as long as I'm not the one paying them. I do find it annoying though that they purposefully place the advertisements on Facebook where I could accidentally click on one of them. Most of the time, the ads they show as a result of being tracked don't even apply to me and just show up because I accidentally clicked on one of the strategically placed advertisements. Cookies can build up after a while and make my computer run slower than usual so I have to go in and delete them all when that happens. Tracking for Google is okay, but tracking for advertisements just gets irritating.
ReplyDeleteI'm not completely against what these website are doing, but there should be some limitations. For instance, facebook being able to track what I do even after I log out is a bit wierd. At least give the consumer the option to choose if they want to be a part of this program. For the most part, if these "cookies" aren't obtaining any personal information, most people wouldn't have a problem with it. As long as hackers aren't able to use these same "cookies" to access personal data, I see no reason to ban this from websites.
ReplyDeleteI think Facebook should be able to use these cookies to track people for advertisements, because it does keep it free and I am not about to pay to use Facebook. I do feel like Facebook should have made this obvious to it's users that they were going to be tracked, instead of trying to keep it hidden. Yes, it was probably written somewhere in the contract but no one ever reads those things. As long as Facebook only tracks it's users for advertisements, then I'm fine with that but if more and more computers start to get hacked by this then it will be a problem. People were fine with these cookies, before they even knew about them, so why make such a big deal now when it's been going on for years. Facebook just needs to makes things more clear about who/what they use for tracking, and explain to users how it works. That I feel like is that main issue, is that people never really knew/understand this was happening until recently.
ReplyDeleteI believe on a privacy based standpoint that our information should remain private and that companies shouldnt manipulate our right to hold our information to ourselves and mask it with social networking. It would be unreasonable to ask the social networks to remain free and protect privacy, that would mean no profit whatsoever. I think in terms of the facebook users, it would be a consensus that using cookies to track our information is valid when applied to advertisements only. There is a certain trust we hold in knowing that what we browse or reveal to social networks is reasonable safe, which is why these networks put so much work into making us feel protected.
ReplyDelete