Author: Wendy McKinney

Are We Really In Control? Technology and Its Ethics

As I listened to Tristan Harris’s Ted Talk, How a handful of tech companies control billions of minds every day, I was reminded of an assignment that I give to my middle school students. I require them to read articles covering both sides of an argument in order to help them answer the question “Is technology helping or hurting us?”  I agree with Harris’s point that tech companies are manipulating us towards things that are not necessarily the best for us, but that this same power could be used to encourage us in more healthy and positive pursuits. One of the articles that I require my students to read is, Is Technology Killing Our Friendships? by Lauren Tarshis.  Tarshis’ article suggests that technology is “killing” the friendships of teens by giving them the illusion that they have true friendships just because they have 500 friends on Facebook.  The reality is that they actually never reach a deep level of friendship with any of their “friends” outside of liking the persona that each person has created online. Yet, they have been convinced that “friended” equals friendship. Harris suggests that social media could be used to “..empower us to live out the timeline that we want.”  He suggests that if we were given the opportunity to instead of posting a controversial question online, we could use that same platform to plan a dinner party where the conversations can be had in person, building those relationships in person while furthering the same controversial discussion, we would be creating a much more healthy timeline.  Tarshis’s article makes the same point. Human contact is key to our continued social growth.  

Harris explains that these tech companies have divisions of people who’s only focus is to manipulate our actions online.  They have created the ability to “… precisely target a lie only to those people who would be more susceptible to it.” To me, this is terrifying. I agree with Harris when he suggests that “The only form of ethical persuasion exists  when the goals of the persuader are aligned with the goals of the persuedee.” This sounds wonderful and very idealistic. As much as this would be what is best for the masses, what is the likelihood of these corporations giving up their power over us?   As I look at my students faced with the choice “Is technology helping or hurting?” and I am surprised. There is always a significant number of students when confronted with the data, who actually argue that technology is hurting us. This gives me hope for our future around Harris’s position on ethics. I don’t believe that the internet and social media are inherently evil.  They are benign on their own, but it makes me wonder what it would take to convince these tech companies to use their “power” for our good?

Safety, Security, and Privacy

I grew up feeling like I was safe and had privacy when I needed it.  If the doors were locked at night, we were safe. If I needed to have some privacy, I closed a door.  The biggest fear that was pounded into me was to make sure that I kept my social security number safe.  This was easy, I just memorized the number and kept my card in a safety deposit box. I never even thought about someone trying to steal my identity.

The world that my kids have grown up in is very different.  We have spent their entire lives telling them to be careful about what they post on the internet because it is there forever, or we would tell them to not post anything that they wouldn’t want their future employer to see.  These seem like basic, common sense things to do. Beyond this, we felt pretty safe. 

I have a relatively low social media profile.  I have a facebook page that I check every 9 to 12 months and I haven’t posted anything in years.  I have a Linkedin account, but I only check it about once per year. For this reason, I felt pretty safe and that my privacy was intact.  I didn’t think about the fact that I pay all of our bills online and make online purchases on a weekly basis. When my Xfinity account was hacked last month and $350 worth of extra charges were added to my bill, I realized how truly naive I am.  

After reading How to protect your privacy and remove data from online services by David Howell, I discovered how much of a digital footprint I actually have.  Due to linkability, I have very little privacy. Due to big data, there is a very strong profile of me to be used in various ways.  I may never have posted embarrassing pictures or made unfortunate posts, but through my everyday use of the internet I have unwittingly given up my own right to privacy.  

I like Howell’s suggestions to erase our digital footprint through unsubscribing to sites, watching privacy settings, and using stealth mode when searching the internet to name a few.  I am glad that governments are working to help with privacy, such as the European Union Court of Justice ruling for the “right to be forgotten,” but my fear is that our legislature is not keeping up with the constantly evolving internet world. 

Our children are using the internet and social media more than ever and without proper education, they could be setting themselves up for devastating consequences in their future due to their naive choices today.  As Dana Boyd explained in The Future of Privacy in Social Media, children do not realize the power that they are giving away without a thought as they post everything about their lives on social media platforms.  I think that we need more education for our children around safety, security, and social media. They need to be taught how to keep themselves safe and the importance of respecting their own privacy.  Having been in education for 13 years, I have never seen any kind of in-depth instruction surrounding these topics. This may be one way that we can help our children to stay safe.