15 August 2014
Ch1 Paper AYBT?
Under Technology’s Thumb In all honesty, when a person rents a car, uses a credit card, carries a cell phone or has internet, do they know that they are potentially being tracked? Is there any privacy available for the average person who uses technology? Currently, there are so many different technological advancements, that “innocent tracking technology could be used by governments, corporations, and possibly criminals to monitor the daily activities of ordinary people…Tracking technology could have a significant effect on our ability to keep our daily lives private (Parsons, 42)”. Therefore, it seems the ability of staying out from under someone’s thumb, whether it is a government agency, a criminal, or even a company, can prove to be a very difficult task, when there is the use of different types of technology in play, it is convenient but at the same time the potential infringement of privacy is a threat. First, in today’s world, technology plays a key factor for people in business and in their personal lives, the ability to be socially adept, and the ability for their businesses to thrive is what makes the world turn. The more advanced the technology the greater the profits. In fact, what better way than to use technology in order to trace humans than through technology, which is used everywhere and every day? Governments track their citizens, criminals track their victims, and companies tack their consumers. If they can use tracking technology that is implemented in every small aspect of our personal lives, then therefore, everybody goes home a winner. Money is made. Time is saved. The world is safe and corrupt at the same time! As an example; “In a recent hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Al Franken reminded his fellow Americans, “People have a fundamental right to control their private information.” At this hearing the Senator brought up the issue about Carrier IQ’s software-CIQ (Rosen)”. According to this article, very few people have even heard of this software, which runs under the App functions on devices such as cell phones and note pads. This software holds the IQ of the user, such as information about the user, birthdates, names, contacts, and etcetera. Consequently, CIQ does not require the App users consent or even their knowledge for that matter, for it to operate or start running. Secondly, in every household around the world there is a computer, a laptop, cell phone, or note pad, Xbox, router, and the list can go on. All of these electronic devices that connect to the internet, the largest computer network in the world, with billions of users at any given time, users who can be tracked “online, the internet, these giant networks of computers all connected to the World Wide Web make it a whole lot easier for the feds to watch every little thing you do” (Kelly). Other examples are antennas for cell phone coverage all over the world, which can track cell phones. Other forms of tracking using technology are, GPS tracking, which is also used in navigational systems on vehicles, such as LoJack or OnStar, or maps. Likewise, a person’s animals and a company’s shipping containers are tracked by implants or product labels, such as RFID Chips, that use a radio frequency. There are also wire taps, cameras, and there are even future plans to put tracking devices in license plates of vehicles, making the possibilities of keeping people under surveillance endless.
Thirdly, people are tracked by their lifestyle, and by the conveniences that they enjoy, such as paying a bill with the touch of an App on their cell phone, the convenience of swiping that credit card at the cashier with the consumer and bank tracking what they are buying, and through the use of that navigational system when they go on vacation. Therefore, to make life fun and convenient Apple has 1.2 million applications (App) and their competitor Google, has the