“Privacy is one of the most important requirements for enabling major societal change. All the rights we have acquired over the past century, from women's suffrage to same-sex marriage, have come about because the groups involved were able to work out their plans without the ‘powers that be’ listening in. Only with adequate privacy can you protect yourself against the information power of large companies and organisations.”
“If you look at what has happened in recent years, things are going in the wrong direction when it comes to protecting our privacy. Companies such as Google, Facebook and Amazon not only dominate an increasing share of the data collected on the internet, but are also getting closer and closer to violating our privacy as individuals. Consider a Google Home speaker that can listen to what happens in your home, or a Tesla that keeps track of where you go. With all that data, organisations can make a rather detailed picture of your behaviour and even your thoughts.”
“The fact that a lot of data has been collected about the current generation does not mean that this should continue to future generations. For example, Google Maps can provide excellent navigation without having access to all your location data. That is also what I argue for in my new book: let's go back to building systems that function the way we want them to.”
Facebook ecosystem
“I don't think you should just build those new solutions yourself within the university. Building a prototype is possible, but for an end product you have to think about branding, customer service, all kinds of peripheral matters – we should leave that to companies. Researchers need to spark the debate and make it clear that there are technical possibilities to protect our privacy more effectively. I believe it is important for scientists to think about a better solution and discuss it with the wider public, policy makers, companies and students – actually with everyone who uses the internet.”
“The internet has become more and more closed in recent years. Consider, for example, the difference between email and WhatsApp. I can send an email to anyone, regardless of the email application I use or where I have my email account. But if you want to receive and send WhatsApp messages, you have to join the Facebook ecosystem. As far as I'm concerned, we should return a bit more to the original internet: with open systems, but without the ‘powers that be’ listening in.”
Tip: Deliberately digital
“Be more deliberate about your choices in the digital world. Just because something is free doesn't mean it has no consequences for you. If you decide to use Facebook or TikTok, then you should understand what you are revealing and whether you really want that.”
Photo: Thought Catalog via Unsplash