In today’s day and age, should people be surprised by the lack of privacy offered in society? Should politicians be upset at the United States because of allegations of wiretapping?
Just recently Angela Merkel, chancellor of Germany, found out that the National Security Agency was tapping her phone records. The news doesn’t come as a surprise to most Americans, as the recent headlines within the past few months have shown that the NSA is spying on many international officials including Dilma Rousseff, the president of Brazil.
Most of these leaders were infuriated by the breach in their privacy, but why should they care?
In today’s era of technological innovation, everyone from government officials to normal citizens have the potential to be monitored by agencies like the NSA, which has arguably some of the most sophisticated data mining resources in the world. It shouldn’t be any surprise to these officials or citizens that their information is being or could be accessed.
What remains is the ethical code of privacy that is breached by countries internationally and when it comes to ethics, many people feel the U.S. is low on the list.
Given the perceived reputation of U.S. security agencies, many ordinary U.S. citizens still feel surprised and offended that their information is being accessed. What most of these people fail to realize is that they are already submitting most of their information by applying for credit cards and home mortgages. Third party companies with less credibility than the US government have access to your information whether you know it or not. Unfortunately, reading the fine print on documentation is a habit that’s still out of fashion for many people.
Today’s college students fall into the same trap of leaking information more so than their older counterparts. Social media sites, like Facebook and Twitter, are consistently being monitored for data. It shouldn’t be surprising that most students leak more data on social media than they do through their interactions face to face.
The main motive behind reflecting on privacy concerns is to raise awareness of the fact that people are already giving up most of their information. Instead of leading a protest to riot about the recent government surveillances, take some time to reflect and think about your own data and information.
The aspects of your privacy you have the most control of relate to your level of financial security as well as your ability to control your emotional expressions in public. Being disciplined in these approaches can significantly secure college students as well as adults in being in control of their information.
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