Last week I had coffee with a contemporary. She’s been a journalist for many years and though she’s in her 70s, she keeps current on trends. Even so, she’s uncertain about whether or not she can get comfortable in a world without personal privacy. “I’m not sure I regret knowing I’ll be leaving the planet sooner rather than later,” she admitted.
I empathized and told her I’d read an article that warned even health records were no longer sacrosanct. All those medical applications people download to monitor their vitals could easily become a public record.
Even if an app or device has airtight security, there’s no telling how many other sites they are sharing their user data with. Once that information leaves their database, it’s at the mercy of whatever security system the next site has. http://http://finance.yahoo.com/news/the-risks-of-using-fitness-bands-and-apps-165319131.html
My friend looked horrified by the news as was I when I read it. But I came across another article that highlights the funny side of electronic spying. Cryptome, a website that supports total transparency in matters of government and industry became so annoyed with Glenn Greenwald for publishing some but not all of Edward Snowden’s documents, that they purloined his latest book before it was published and uploaded it on the internet for everyone to read for free. http://http://www.businessinsider.com/why-cryptome-launched-a-kickstarter-campaign-2014-5. I’m pretty sure Greenwald, who defends his role as a leaker, isn’t happy about becoming a victim.
The truth is, the idea that anyone can keep secrets indefinitely is as quaint an idea as shopping for clip-on earrings. We need a new norm for the 21st century because we all live in a fishbowl. Maybe writer journalist E. W. Howe has the right idea: The man who can keep a secret may be wise, but he is not half as wise as the man how has no secrets to keep.
(Courtesy of rapgenius.com)
