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MOST VIOLATED COMPUTER ETHICS COMMANDMENT

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MOST VIOLATED COMPUTER ETHICS COMMANDMENT

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Students frequently transgress one of the Ten Ethical Computing Guidelines: "Respect the privacy of others." This can take many different forms, like revealing private information without permission, using someone else's account without authorization, or utilizing social media without being aware of data privacy. Because it's so simple to share information online, a lot of students might not think through how their activities would affect other people's privacy.

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WHY SHOULD WE RESPECT EACH OTHERS PRIVACY???

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WHY SHOULD WE RESPECT EACH OTHERS PRIVACY???

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Trust: Individuals need to trust that their personal information will be handled responsibly. This trust is foundational for healthy relationships between users and organizations.

Autonomy: Privacy allows individuals to control their personal information and make informed decisions about what to share and with whom.

Security: Protecting privacy helps safeguard against identity theft, data breaches, and other malicious activities that can harm individuals.

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6 common social media privacy issues ...

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6 common social media privacy issues ...

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Here's a website that provides detailed information on why social media privacy is a common issue !!!

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By

Data privacy is important as users leave digital footprints on a daily basis, but using social media may put your personal data at risk without you knowing it.

Privacy concerns are at the forefront as scandals and data breaches are in the news every day. Beginning in late 2022, data privacy concerns prompted U.S. state and federal agencies to ban employees from using TikTok on government-owned devices. Because TikTok is owned by Chinese company ByteDance, some lawmakers feel the Chinese government may use TikTok to learn confidential information about the U.S. government through these devices.

Data transfers between different countries are also a concern. In May 2023, European Union regulators fined Meta $1.3 billion USD. European Data Protection Board stated Meta violated EU privacy laws by storing and sending European Facebook users' personal data to U.S. servers.

In July 2022, Twitter was hacked, and 200 million user email addresses were posted to the dark web. These leaked email addresses can give bad actors information they need to start malicious attacks.

With the growing use of apps such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Snapchat and TikTok, social media is a part of everyday life for many people. Even with privacy laws, sensitive user information may be at risk.

Why is social media privacy important?

Social media privacy includes personal and sensitive information that people can find out from user accounts. Some of this information is shared voluntarily through posts and profile information. Information also may be released unknowingly through tracking cookies, which track the information of a user's online activity, including webpage views, social media sharing and purchase history. All information is then gathered and sorted by user segments, which data brokers sell for marketing purposes. Examples of categories may be fitness enthusiast, pet lover or parent. With these categories, companies can personalize marketing campaigns to users on social media.

However, scammers and fraudsters also collect this information to better gain access to personal information. More than 90,000 people were victims of social media fraud in 2021, resulting in $770 million in losses, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

What types of data do social media platforms collect?

When users create a social media account and use the platform, they leave a digital footprint on the internet. Companies collect personal information, along with interests and locations, from the platform by using tracking cookies, geofencing and cross-site tracking. When users sign up for an account, they agree to the terms and conditions, which enable social media platforms to collect data.

Even if an account is private, advertisers and scammers can get sensitive data, such as the following:

status updates, including work, life and relationship events;

religious beliefs;

profile information, including name, contact information and birthdate;

location data, including your hometown, check-in locations, previous cities lived or exact address;

personal interests, such as buying history and website interactions;

shared content, such as status updates, photos and videos;

engagement on social media, including likes, shares or comments on other posts;

employment information, including current or past jobs; and

personal identifiers, such as age, race and gender.

Social media posts can reveal attitudinal data, which captures feelings and emotions. This data measures how users feel about certain messages and content. Attitudinal data can be used with surveys, interviews, reviews, feedback, preferences and complaints.

Preference data on social media discloses how a user supports various ideas, activities and content, such as politics, food, entertainment genres and religious beliefs.

Facebook has the largest number of users. Here is a breakdown of active monthly social media users by platform.

What do companies do with this data?

Social media platforms use data to analyze the market, show targeted ads, tailor services and recommend posts. Dislikes and likes can also help shape a user's social media portrait.

Companies use this information to find out the interests of their customers. They may ask if the ads are relevant on their channels. These short questions can help customize ads to a person's interests.

Social media surveys also ask questions about your interests. These responses are recorded, and companies related to user interests can purchase the data, along with other's in the relevant interest category, such as pet owner, car enthusiast or video gamer. With the information collected from these surveys, companies can tag users to keep them engaged with their social media posts.

When a platform advertises a brand, it gets paid in return. These posts may appear as sponsored content to users with data relating to the advertising brand. Companies pay to appear on the social media feeds with users matching their products. This targeted information is gathered from tracking cookies or information shared. If users provide an email or phone number, companies could also use those to share information with users about their products and services.

Common social media privacy issues

With the large amount of data on user social media accounts, scammers can find enough information to spy on users, steal identities and attempt scams. Data protection issues and loopholes in privacy controls can put user information at risk when using social media. Other social media privacy issues include the following.

1. Data mining for identity theft

Scammers do not need a great deal of information to steal someone's identity. They can start with publicly available information on social media to help target victims. For example, scammers can gather usernames, addresses, email addresses and phone numbers to target users with phishing scams.

Even with an email address or phone number, a scammer can find more information, such as leaked passwords, Social Security numbers and credit card numbers.

2. Privacy setting loopholes

Social media accounts may not be as private as users think. For example, if a user shared something with a friend and they reposted it, the friend's friends can also see the information. The original user's reposted information is now in front of a completely different audience.

Even closed groups may not be completely private because postings can be searchable, including any comments.

3. Location settings

Location app settings may still track user whereabouts. Even if someone turns off their location settings, there are other ways to target a device's location. The use of public Wi-Fi, cellphone towers and websites can also track user locations. Always check that the GPS location services are turned off, and browse through a VPN to avoid being tracked.

User location paired with personal information can provide accurate information to a user profile. Bad actors can also use this data to physically find users or digitally learn more about their habits.

4. Harassment and cyberbullying

Social media can be used for cyberbullying. Bad actors don't need to get into someone's account to send threatening messages or cause emotional distress. For example, children with social media accounts face backlash from classmates with inappropriate comments.

Doxxing -- a form of cyberbullying -- involves bad actors purposely sharing personal information about a person to cause harm, such as a person's address or phone number. They encourage others to harass this person.

5. False information

People can spread disinformation on social media quickly. Trolls also look to provoke other users into heated debates by manipulating emotions.

Most social media platforms have content moderation guidelines, but it may take time for posts to be flagged. Double-check information before sending or believing something on social media.

6. Malware and viruses

Social media platforms can be used to deliver malware, which can slow down a computer, attack users with ads and steal sensitive data. Cybercriminals take over the social media account and distribute malware to both the affected account and all the user's friends and contacts.

How to protect your information

Think twice when opening a new social media account because each platform adds an additional risk. Make sure the platform is safe and reliable before joining. When leaving a platform, make sure to delete the account.

Other ways to keep information safe include the following:

Use strong passwords. Don't reuse passwords across multiple programs or websites. For help remembering sign-on credentials, use a password manager to store information securely.

Avoid public devices. When using a shared device, be sure to log out when finished.

Don't overshare. Avoid providing more details than necessary. Users shouldn't have to share addresses or date of birth on all platforms.

Disable geolocation data. Disable sharing location information on apps in the privacy and security settings on the phone.

Don't click on suspicious links. Even if the link appears to be from a friend, avoid clicking on links unless it's from a trusted source.

Use two-factor authentication. Implementing two-factor authentication, such as a passcode and biometric recognition, adds another layer of security to the app.

Next Steps
20 social media terms to know TikTok bans explained: Everything you need to know Top social media statistics to check out

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Learn how your social media data may be shared with companies and how bad actors can take this information to create other malicious attacks.

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Privacy is an increasingly rare commodity these days. Just search for yourself on Pipl.com -you might be surprised at the number of companies that claim to have information about your family, income, address, phone number and much, much more.

That's because your personal information, including your email address, phone number and social security number, is worth a lot of money to legitimate businesses and bad guys alike. The bad guys just want to steal from you. Companies want to know as much about you as possible so they can sell you more products and services or serve you ads that are highly relevant to your demographics and preferences.

So take these simple steps to protect your valuable personal information.

1. Don't fill out your social media profile.

The more information you share online, the easier it's going to be for someone to get their hands on it. Don't cooperate.

Take a look at your social media profiles and keep them barren-the people who need to know your birth date, email address and phone number already have them. And what exactly is the point of sharing everything about yourself in your Facebook profile? If you care about your privacy, you won't do it.

2. Be choosy about sharing your social security number-even the last 4 digits.

Think twice about sharing your social security number with anyone, unless it's your bank, a credit bureau, a company that wants to do a background check on you or some other entity that has to report to the IRS. If someone gets their hands on it and has information such your birth date and address they can steal your identity and take out credit cards and pile up other debt in your name.

Even the last four digits of your social security number should only be used when necessary. The last four are often used by banks an other institutions to reset your password for access your account.

Plus, if someone has the last four digits and your birth place, it's a lot easier to guess the entire number. That's because the first three are determined by where you, or your parents, applied for your SSN. And the second set of two are the group number, which is assigned to all numbers given out at a certain time in your geographic area. So a determined identity thief with some computing power could hack it given time.

3. Lock down your hardware.

Set up your PC to require a password when it wakes from sleep or boots up. Sure, you may trust the people who live in your house, but what if your laptop is stolen or you lose it?

Same thing with your mobile devices. Not only should you use a passcode to access them every time you use them, install an app that will locate your phone or tablet if it's lost or stolen, as well as lock it or wipe it clean of any data so a stranger can't get access to the treasure trove of data saved on it.

And, make sure your computers and mobile devices are loaded with anti-malware apps and software. They can prevent prevent criminals from stealing your data. We recommend Norton Internet Security ($49.99 on norton.com or $17.99 on Amazon) in our computer security buying guide or stepping up to Norton 360 Multi-Device ($59.99 on norton.com or $49.99 on Amazon) if you have mobile devices. And, you'll want to double up your protection on Android devices by installing , since we found anti-malware apps are dismal at detecting spyware.

4. Turn on private browsing.

If you don't want anyone with physical access to your computer to see where you're hanging out online you should enable "private browsing," a setting available in each major web browser. It deletes cookies, temporary Internet files and browsing history after you close the window.

Every company that advertises online is interested in knowing what sites you visit, what you buy, who you're friends with on social networks, what you like and more. By gathering information about your online activities they can serve you targeted ads that are more likely to entice you to buy something.

For instance, the Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ buttons you see on just about every site allow those networks to track you even if you don't have an account or are logged into them. Other times information collection companies rely on embedded code in banner ads that track your visits, preferences, and demographic information.

If you truly care about your privacy you'll surf the Internet anonymously by hiding your IP address. You can do this using a web proxy, a Virtual Private Network (VPN) or Tor, a free open network that works by routing your traffic through a series of servers, operated by volunteers around the world, before sending it to your destination.

5. Use a password vault that generates and remembers strong and unique passwords.

Most people know better than to use the same password for more than one website or application. In reality, it can be impossible to remember a different one for the dozens of online services you use. The problem with using the same password in more than one place is if someone gets their hands on your password-say, through a phishing attack-they can access all your accounts and cause all sorts of trouble.

To eliminate this dilemma, use a password manager that will not only remember all your passwords, but will generate super strong and unique ones and automatically fill them into login fields with the click of a button.

LastPass is an excellent and free choice.

6. Use two-factor authentication.

You can lock down your Facebook, Google, Dropbox, Apple ID, Microsoft, Twitter and other accounts with two-factor authentication. That means that when you log in, you'll also need to enter a special code that the site texts to your phone. Some services require it each time you log in, other just when you're using a new device or web browser. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has a great overview of what's available.

Two-factor authentication works beautifully for keeping others from accessing your accounts, although some people feel it's too time consuming. But if you're serious about privacy, you'll put up with the friction.

7. Set up a Google alert for your name.

This is a simple way to keep an eye on anything someone might be saying about you on the web. It's just a matter of telling Google what to look for (in this case, your name), as well as what kinds of web pages to search, how often to search and what email address the search engine giant should use to send you notifications. Set up a Google alert here.

8. Pay for things with cash.

According to Business Insider, credit card companies are selling your purchase data to advertisers. Don't want companies knowing how much booze you're buying or other potentially embarrassing habits? Buy things the old fashioned way-with coins and bills.

9. Keep your social network activity private.

Check your Facebook settings and make sure only friends can see what you're doing. Go to the settings cog in the upper right hand corner of your screen, then click on Privacy Settings >> Who can see my stuff.

On Twitter, click on the settings cog, then Settings. From there you can adjust all sorts of privacy settings, such as a box that gives Twitter permission to add your location to tweets as well as the ability to make your tweets private, meaning only people you approve can see them. You can also stop the microblogging platform from tailoring your Twitter experience based on other sites you visit.

If you use Google+, go to Home >> Settings. There you can adjust things like who can interact with you, comment on your posts or start a conversation with you.

10. Don't give our your zip code when making credit card purchases.

Often stores will ask for your zip code when you're checking out with a credit card. Don't give it to them unless you want to donate your details to their marketing database, warns Forbes. By matching your name, taken from your credit card, with your zip code, companies can more easily mine more information, including your address, phone number and email. address.

11. Lie when setting up password security questions.

"What is your mother's maiden name?" or "In what city were you born?" are common questions websites often ask you to answer so as to supposedly keep your account safe from intruders. In reality, there's nothing secure about such generic queries. That's because someone who wants access to your account could easily do some Internet research to dig up the answers.

Not sure you can remember your lies? You can create "accounts" in your password manager just for this purpose.

Do you know any other good privacy tips? Let us know in the comments below!

This article was written by Christina DesMarais and originally appeared on Techlicious.
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11 Simple Ways to Protect Your Privacy | TIME.com

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Privacy is an increasingly rare commodity these days. Just search for yourself on Pipl.com -you might be surprised at the number of companies that claim to have information about your family, income, address, phone number and much, much more.