e-Tox November 18, 2008
Posted by airyrae in Blessings and Burdens.Tags: Blackberry, e-tox, obama, privacy
2 comments
If traditional media ever becomes obsolete, I’ll feel sorry for our president. The media has been heavily covering the fact that Obama has to give up his Blackberry once he’s sworn into office. I don’t know about you, but I feel lost without my cell phone. Poor Barack: no cell phone, no e-mail, and possibly no laptop in the Oval Office. It is apparent that while new media benefits us in convenience it costs us in security. While I understand the importance of some presidential records being open to public inspection, I can’t imagine having to cut the e-cord. Plus its ironic that the very mediums that allowed Obama to succeed throughout his campaign; he must now abandon himself.
Still, I wonder what it would be like to be independent again. On the whole, Americans have become very co-dependent on new media devices. And we accept these devices as only good. Pay no mind to the fact that cell phones may cause cancer and can allow us to be easily located or tracked. I don’t want people to be able to locate or track me by my cell phone. However, if I was a parent I’d view the tracking features on my child’s cell phone as a safety feature.
But the implications that new media has on our individual privacy worries me. And you can’t even argue that at least new media is green; in terms of saving paper. While I do not doubt that our reliance on paper has been drastically lessened by the advent of new media: new mediums can’t truly be green until the processes used to manufacture them are green. The un-environmental practices that go into manufacturing the batteries and electronics alone to create cell phones and laptops offset any green end that these mediums result in.
While there are costs and benefits associated with any form of media; digital mediums are the first to threaten the privacy of the general public. One’s level of privacy and other’s access to our personal digital communications is rather troubling. Basically, you shouldn’t text, e-mail, or say anything over a wireless phone that you wouldn’t want headlined on tomorrow’s newspaper. I guess its fortunate for us that newspapers won’t be around much longer.
Till next time.
Arin
E-Privacy: A Series of Unfortunate Events November 17, 2008
Posted by airyrae in Blessings and Burdens.Tags: Intelius, new media, privacy, public records
2 comments
“To each, their own”
I’d just like to vent today because my family has just had the unfortunate experience of learning that those who could potentially cause us harm can easily locate us through the use of new media. My husband works in criminal justice, and his employer just sent out an officer safety bulletin stating that a sworn officer received threats to himself and his family following an arrest. The suspect had detailed information about the officer’s family, residences and phone numbers.
These criminals used the site www.intelius.com to purchase these personal records for $2.95. This Web site gathers: name, age, address history, phone numbers, birth dates, income and family information from a variety of public sources: utility bills, court records etc. The least this Web site could do is use the information they sell to do a background check on their customers, as opposed to just offering this private information up to anyone with three dollars. While I realize that this information is public and could be ultimately compiled by anyone this Web site has taken all the grunt work out of it. At least in the good old days, criminals would have to visit the correct courthouses and dig through the public records themselves. But now, thanks to new media, criminals can pay a nominal fee and get a accurate record of my family’s life in less than a minute. And just so you know I visited this Web site and was appalled by the information it contained on my family and that anyone and their brother has such easy access to it.
I appreciate the attributes of new media and public records alike. But whoever thought is was a good idea to put these two things together on the internet and sell it to the masses is a jerk face. And I’d punch them if in the nose if it wouldn’t hurt my little arthritic hands so much. The idea that some criminal could track, harass, or even hurt our family simply because my husband was doing his job is sickening. Needless to say our information will soon be removed from this Web site. Oh and don’t worry, if someone gets ahold of your social security number they can also find out the rest of your identity through this site.
Unfortunately, this Web site operates under a don’t ask/don’t tell policy where they assume their service is OK with you unless you inform them otherwise. To have your information removed from this Web site customer service at Intelius recommends that you enter your name and state into their Web site, print off the results page, and circle the names you want removed. You may then fax or mail a written request to be removed from the site to Intelius at: 500 108 Avenue NE, Suite 1600, Bellevue, WA 98004 or fax the request to (425) 974-6194. The information will supposedly be removed within one week.
