Privacy

Summary: In the book "Signs of life in the USA" there is an article that talks about what is private and public on the web. Everyone these days has some kind of social media that they are checking constantly. You might be doing this from home or outside the confines of your home but how do you know who is in your personal space. Nothing is private on the web. Even though you might have all your settings set to private there is always a way to get in. In your own space you can set up guide lines and have rules but once you post things on the internet is not longer your personal space. The book adds that, "You don't insult people in their own homes, but online flaming occurs all too often." Meaning the web is a wide open space that you cannot control what people say. Unlike your home where you can kick someone out, the web is a place where there are no real rules. "Many sites and forums where people socialize and communicate are described as being like the Wild West." In other words even though the web is meant for socializing you still have to be careful of the gun slinging.

Response: No matter what you put on the web anyone can get into it and I know this personally. I had an issue with my work and the social network Facebook. Even though my page was set to private and I had my coworkers blocked, somehow they still got in. Not only did they get in but they posted mean things on my page. I had no control of what they wrote but as soon as I saw it I deleted it. I still don't know how they got in but it doesn't matter.  My personal opinion is if there is something you don't want aired publicly you should not put in online because it will finds its way to the public. I agree with the article that we do not have our own personal space anymore. Everyone is always on the web and now they can do it from anywhere. You can go on from your phone, laptops or tablets. A lot of places even have free WiFi, so you don't have to even pay for a data plan. All you have to do is have something that gives a access to the internet. Our whole world is changing and technology mistaking over. We might have some privacy now but I believe that pretty soon all our privacy rights will be gone for good unless we live in the middle of a Jungle.