Reader Response Draft 3

In the article “The Perils of Over-sharing in Social Networks”, Emm (2014) claims that that the increasing dependency on the internet “exposes the minutiae of our daily lives” to individuals who can collect this information. While the internet can make users’ lives more convenient, security can be easily compromised. Sharing too much information online can also threaten the safety of individuals and their organizations. Although the threat of cyber crimes on mobile devices has yet to be evident, Emm (2014) urges readers not to be complacent about security by recommending measures such as using different passwords for different accounts and updating them regularly.  

Being part of the Generation Y, I can relate to this article since the internet has become a necessity in my life. In fact, most users have become so reliant on their mobile devices that they probably will be uncomfortable without it even for a few hours. Emm (2014) mentions that users depend so much on applications in their daily tasks that “our personal communications, our buying preferences, even our very whereabouts” are known to those who have access to this information. However, I disagree that dependence on mobile devices results in the details of users’ daily lives being exposed as there are several factors that the article has failed to consider. The first factor is that not all applications will contain or reveal personal details of the user. For instance, applications used to track expenses, watch videos, and check arrival timings of buses are unlikely to contain personal information that jeopardize users’ safety.  

For applications that contain private details of the user, security settings are put in place to prevent others from accessing this information. For example, users using internet banking applications have to go through a two-factor authentication system, with the use of a security token and pin number send to their registered phones before they can carry out a transaction. In addition, applications used for communication purposes have come out with various features to protect users’ conversations (Dredge, 2014). Telegram allows users to have secret chat groups which self-destructs the messages (Albright, 2014) while TextSecure on the other hand, allows users to encrypt their messages and can only be accessed using a passphrase (Demi, 2014). As users rely more on the internet, developers of these applications are also strengthening their security features to better protect users’ information.

Lastly, it is not the dependency on the internet that leads to users’ lives being overexposed and their safety being compromised. It is the content that users choose to share on the internet and the people that they share with. It is not necessary for users to share their locations and social media has given them the option of privatizing their accounts. However, I observed that some allow strangers to view their profiles and Foursquare, an application that allow users to share their locations is still widely used. Sharing personal information on social media can lead to dire consequences. For instance, Helen Flanagan, a public figure got robbed after a tweet revealing that her boyfriend was away (Bull & Cooper, 2013). It is then important that users share responsibly on the internet.

In conclusion, dependency on the internet does not lead to overexposure of users' lives. More stringent security features have been implemented to protect privacy. Also, the safety of users will not be compromised even if they are reliant on the internet as long as they practice precaution in the information they share online.

(578 words)

References:

Albright, D. (2014, November 17). Telegram provides a secure & fast-growing alternative to WhatsApp. Retrieved from http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/telegram-provides-secure-fast-growing-alternative-whatsapp/

Bull, S., & Cooper, R. (2013, June 19). Terror of Coronation Street star Helen Flanagan as three armed raiders break into her house and steal jewellery and mobile phone after she tweeted she was home alone. Daily Mail. Retrieved from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2343839/Helen-Flanagan-left-shaken-armed-raiders-break-house-steal-jewellery-mobile-phone.html

Demi, J. (2014, May 13). TextSecure feature overview. Retrieved from http://www.johannesdeml.com/blog/textsecure-feature-overview/

Dredge, S. (2014, December 11). Worried about leaky chats? Messaging apps are responding with security features. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/dec/11/messenger-private-chats

Emm, D. (2014, March 21). The perils of over-sharing in social networks. Huffpost Tech. Retrieved from  http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/david-emm/the-perils-of-over-sharing-in-social-networks_b_5005276.html

Reader Response Draft 2

In the article “The Perils of Over-sharing in Social Networks”, Emm (2014) claims that that the increasing dependency on the internet “exposes the minutiae of our daily lives” to individuals who can collect this information. Though the internet can make users’ lives more convenient, security can be easily compromise. Sharing too much information online can also threaten the safety of individuals and their organizations. Although the threat of cyber crimes on mobile devices has yet to be evident, Emm (2014) urges readers not to be complacent about security by recommending measures such as using different passwords for different accounts and updating them regularly.  

Being part of the Generation Y, I can relate to this article since the internet has become a necessity in my life. In fact, most users have become so reliant on their mobile devices that they probably will be uncomfortable without it even for a few hours. However, I do not agree with the article that such dependence result in the details of users’ daily lives being expose. He mentions that users depend so much on applications in their daily tasks that “our personal communications, our buying preferences, even our very whereabouts” can be make known to those who have access to this information. The article, however fails to consider that not all applications will contain or reveal personal details of the user. For instance, applications use to track expenses, watch videos, and check arrival timings of buses are unlikely to contain personal information that jeopardizes users’ safety.  

For applications that contain private details of the user, security settings are put in place to prevent others from accessing this information. For example, users using internet banking applications have to go through a two-factor authentication system, with the use of a security token and pin number send to their registered phones before they can carry out a transaction. In addition, applications use for communication purposes have come out with various features to protect users’ conversations (Dredge, 2014). Telegram allows users to have secret chat groups which self-destructs the messages (Albright, 2014) while TextSecure on the other hand, allows users to encrypt their messages and can only be access using a passphrase (Demi, 2014). As users rely more on the internet, developers of these applications are also strengthening their security features to better protect users’ information.

Lastly, it is not the dependency on the internet that leads to users’ lives being overexpose and their safety being compromise. It is the content that users choose to share on the internet and the people that they share with. It is not necessary for users to share their locations and social media has given them the option of privatizing their accounts. However, I observe that some allow strangers to view their profiles and Foursquare, an application that allow users to share their locations is still widely use. Sharing personal information on social media can lead to dire consequences. For instance, Helen Flanagan, a public figure got robbed after a tweet revealing that her boyfriend was away (Bull & Cooper, 2013). It is then important that users share responsibly on the internet.

In conclusion, dependency on the internet does not lead to overexposure of users' lives. More stringent security features have been implemented to protect privacy. Also, the safety of users will not be compromise even if they are reliant on the internet as long as they practice precaution in the information they share online.

(571 words)

References:

Albright, D. (2014, November 17). Telegram provides a secure & fast-growing alternative to WhatsApp. Retrieved from http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/telegram-provides-secure-fast-growing-alternative-whatsapp/

Bull, S., & Cooper, R. (2013, June 19). Terror of Coronation Street star Helen Flanagan as three armed raiders break into her house and steal jewellery and mobile phone after she tweeted she was home alone. Daily Mail. Retrieved from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2343839/Helen-Flanagan-left-shaken-armed-raiders-break-house-steal-jewellery-mobile-phone.html

Demi, J. (2014, May 13). TextSecure feature overview. Retrieved from http://www.johannesdeml.com/blog/textsecure-feature-overview/

Dredge, S. (2014, December 11). Worried about leaky chats? Messaging apps are responding with security features. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/dec/11/messenger-private-chats

Emm, D. (2014, March 21). The perils of over-sharing in social networks. Huffpost Tech. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/david-emm/the-perils-of-over-sharing-in-social-networks_b_5005276.html

Reader Response Draft 1

  

In the article “The Perils of Over-sharing in Social Networks”, Emm (2014) observed an increasing dependency on the internet and believed that it “exposes the minutiae of our daily lives” to individuals who can collect this information. Though the internet can make our lives more convenient, security can be easily compromised. Sharing too much information online can also threaten the safety of individuals and their organizations. Although the threat of cybercrimes on mobile devices has not been evident yet, Emm (2014) urged readers not to be complacent about security by using different passwords and changing them regularly.  

            Being part of the Generation Y, I can very much relate to the article when it mentioned that the internet is a necessity in our lives. In fact, most have become so reliant on their mobile device that they probably will be uncomfortable without it even for a few hours. However, I do not agree with Emm that such dependence can result in the details of our daily lives being exposed. The type of applications used on mobile devices has to be taken into consideration. Not all applications will contain or reveal personal details of the user. For instance, applications used to track expenses, watch videos, and check arrival timings of buses are unlikely to jeopardize our personal safety. For myself, I spend most of my time on my mobile phone on games, videos and articles and this dependency on the internet for entertainment and information does not contain any important content or informed others of my activities unless I chose to share it on social media. 

            Even for applications that contain private details of the user, security settings are put in place to prevent others from accessing this information. Using the example of internet banking, before users can carry out a transaction, they will have to go through a two-factor authentication system through the use of a security token and pin number send to registered phones. Also, to make our conversations more private, applications have come out with various features to protect our messages (Dredge, 2014). Telegram allowed users to have secret chat groups which self-destruct the messages after a few second while TextSecure on the other hand, allowed users to encrypt their messages and access it with a passphrase. Developers and companies of these applications are not compromising on these security features and consumers need to play their part by using these features provided.

            Relying too much on the internet or mobile devices also does not threaten your safety unless an individual chooses to share personal information and with strangers. Sharing of location is not a necessity and social media has the option of privatizing our account. However, I observed that some allowed strangers to view their profile and Foursquare, an application that allowed users to share their locations is widely used. I proposed that this tendency to overshare is due to the needs we have as humans. Research showed that 78% share information online to stay connected with people and 68% did it to define themselves to others (Moon, 2014). This is congruent with the social and esteem needs Maslow has pointed out.         

            In conclusion, dependency on the internet does not lead to overexposure of our lives. More stringent security features have been implemented to protect privacy. Also, the safety of users will not be compromised even if they are reliant on the internet as long as they practice precaution in the information they share.

(575 words)

References:

Emm, D. (2014, March 21). The perils of over-sharing in social networks. Huffpost Tech.Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/david-emm/the-perils-of-over-sharing-in-social-networks_b_5005276.html

Dredge, S. (2014, December 11). Worried about leaky chats? Messaging apps are responding with security features. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/dec/11/messenger-private-chats

Moon, G. (2014, October 2). Why People Share: The Psychology of Social Sharing - CoSchedule. Retrieved February 8, 2015, from http://coschedule.com/blog/why-people-share/

Outline of my Reader Response to “The perils of over-sharing in social networks”

Thesis statement: Disagree that dependency on the internet results in the exposure of the trivial details of our daily lives. “exposes the minutiae of our daily lives”

1^st supporting idea: Nature of the applications used

2^nd supporting idea: Security Setting

3^rd supporting idea: Rather than dependency, it is the information that we share 

Summary Draft 1

In the article “The Perils of Over-sharing in Social Networks”, Emm (2014) observed an increasing dependency on the internet in daily lives and believed that along with the convenience of the internet, security can be easily compromised. Sharing too much information online can threaten the safety of individuals and their organizations. For instance, thieves can be informed of an opportunity to steal when people shared about going on a holiday. Emm (2014) thus urged readers not to be complacent about security by using different passwords and changing them regularly.

(88 words)

Reference:
Emm, D. (2014, March 21). The perils of over-sharing in social networks. Huffpost Tech. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/david-emm/the-perils-of-over-sharing-in-social-networks_b_5005276.html