DevEX - reference for building teams, processes, and platforms
Evolving Relationship Between Disclosure, Audience, Privacy in Networked Spaces
1. I like it…
whatever that means
The evolving relationship
between disclosure,
audience, and privacy
in networked spaces
Jessica Vitak
College of Information Studies
University of Maryland
jvitak@umd.edu | Twitter: @jvitak
Website: jessicavitak.com
2.
3.
4. Google processed
more than
20 PETABYTES
of data per day
in 2014.
(That’s 1,000,000 gigabytes for
the non math-oriented)
Source: Mashable
5. So why do we share
so much online...
And what are the implications of
these shifting norms?
15. General affordances of social media
VISIBILITY: making it easily to locate information
PERSISTENCE: content is visible and searchable for a period of time (aka
archivability)
EDITABILITY: curate identity through careful self-presentation
ASSOCIATION: public displays of connection link people and content
BUT… affordances vary by technology also.
35. The public-private fallacy
in networked publics
1. We make assumptions about who can see a piece of
information we share online. This is a false
expectation of privacy (usually) due to limited
knowledge of how the technology actually works.
2. When choosing between privacy and usability, people
always choose usability.
3. You’re never really truly anonymous.
38. The public-private fallacy
1. People will sacrifice privacy & security for usability.
2. Companies structure their services to encourage sharing
information with a wide audience.
39. The public-private fallacy
You’re leaving digital traces for
everything you do.
Three examples:
1. The Taste, Ties & Time study
2. Target Predicts Pregnancies (and
other targeted advertising)
3. And of course, there’s always the
NSA…
45. ≈
The future remains a (somewhat) blank canvas…
Three critical areas of focus:
1) Providing education and resources on privacy
management
2) Minimizing penalties for non-disclosure/non-use of
technology
3) Pushing companies to be more transparent
46. ≈
Thanks!
Jessica Vitak
College of Information Studies
University of Maryland
Email: jvitak@umd.edu
Twitter: @jvitak
Website: jessicavitak.com/cv
Editor's Notes
So there are a lot of reasons to share information. What is served by liking it?
Katy and I initially became friends over Twitter interactions.
In my work with Nicole and Cliff, we have called these micro-behaviors “signals of relational investment” in that they alert both the recipient and their network of your relationship and seek provide micro-interactions that can maintain relationships. In my dissertation, for example, I found that users engaging in activities on Facebook reminiscent of traditional relationship maintenance behaviors perceived Facebook as helping keep that relationship from fading away. This was particularly true for weaker ties, who may not have the benefit of richer or more varied forms of communication.